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墨書 Inktalez
Human Sacrifice
In 1967, the village chief of Bright Moon Village, Li Wuye, was shot dead while riding to escort the Old Scholar to the Futu Ridge Back Mountain Taoist Temple. His body was hung from a tree, a sight too horrific to bear.
Li Fugui, who had just returned from out of town, heard the news of Li Wuye's death and began investigating the cause. Shortly thereafter, he took over as the leader of the Militia. The people of Futu Ridge feared him like a tiger; even those with powerful connections in nearby towns and counties would find their paths smoothed if they invited Li Fugui.
On the night of Li Wuye's death, there were reports of thunderous sounds coming from the forbidden area in the back mountains of Futu Ridge. It was said that a cleansing movement aimed at eliminating all evil spirits and the Serpent God had angered the Snake Goddess of Futu Ridge, causing her to unleash her fury.
That evening, someone saw Guo the Blind emerging from the forbidden area in the back mountains, covered in blood and in a state of disarray.
At that time, Guo the Blind was not yet blind. The villagers were initially polite to him, fearing that he might possess Daoist Arts like the Old Scholar. They believed that mountain spirits should not be provoked and that deities should not be touched; otherwise, one could meet an untimely death without knowing how it happened. However, when the Militia attacked Guo the Blind and he did not retaliate, the villagers realized that he might only have learned a few superficial tricks from the Old Scholar.
The oppressed people of Dashi Mountain finally recognized that Guo the Blind was nothing more than a fraud deceiving them. Even the Old Scholar was labeled as an old charlatan; he was merely an old man who could perform tricks—otherwise, he wouldn’t have fled.
They began to openly attack and insult Guo the Blind, making him the primary target of their wrath. Strangely enough, despite all methods used against him—burning with hot smoke, hanging him by ropes, or forcing him to sit on a nail-studded bench—he did not die.
Later, in their rage, the townspeople stripped Guo the Blind's wife and paraded her through town on a cart. At that time, everyone was starving and emaciated; there was no concept of handsome men or beautiful women. However, Guo the Blind's wife was the daughter of a tobacco merchant—a refined young lady with skin as smooth as milk. Many lecherous villagers secretly lusted after her and lay in bed at night indulging in their fantasies.
They forced Guo the Blind's wife to confess how she had been involved with him in scandalous affairs, questioning how capitalism could intertwine with feudal poison.
Guo the Blind wanted his wife to speak those filthy words on his behalf, but the crowd insisted that she must say it herself.
After being paraded through town several times, this woman went mad and began running around naked. The elderly villagers often saw her being dragged into corn stalks by several local boys but chose to turn a blind eye.
Upon learning this, Guo the Blind wanted to escape from his confinement in the cow shed. At that time, his only friend was young Old Man Wang. Though timid by nature, Old Man Wang protected Guo the Blind; otherwise, he would have likely been tortured to death long ago.
Guo the Blind was chained in the cow shed and unable to escape. One night, he pleaded with Old Man Wang to find a broken statue of Ancestor Master at Old Scholar's Taoist temple in the back mountains. Beneath that statue lay something buried; if he could dig it out and bring it back to him, he would have a way to save himself.
Old Man Wang agreed despite his fear; however, no one anticipated that walls have ears. Halfway to the back mountains, he was captured by several young Militia members who beat him black and blue until he revealed everything.
The crowd dragged Old Man Wang to the ruins of the burned-down temple on the back mountain, where they found the statue of the Three Pure Ones, which was only half a body. The statue was toppled, and beneath it, they indeed unearthed something.
This object was a clay figure, carved so lifelike that it seemed almost real.
When the clay figure was smashed before Guo the Blind by a boy from the Militia, something strange happened. Blood began to flow from the shattered pieces of clay, and Guo the Blind's face instantly turned pale, his body suddenly soaked in blood.
As Guo the Blind cursed furiously, he lunged at the boy who had broken the clay figure, grabbing him by the throat. No one could pull him away; even the chains binding him snapped under his rage.
In the end, a dozen people had to beat Guo the Blind with bricks and iron rods until he was covered in blood before he finally released his grip. Lying in a pool of blood, Guo the Blind did not die, but from that moment on, the boy who had smashed the clay figure fell ill and soon passed away.
Later, Guo the Blind had his eyes gouged out in one night by an unknown assailant, and even his woman jumped into a river to commit suicide. People believed it was the family of that boy who had done it. The villagers felt pity for Guo the Blind and advised their children not to harm him any further.
Human nature is often changeable and dark when unrestrained. Guo the Blind faced less persecution, but his son, Guo Huaiyi, became a laughingstock among the other children in the village. He was seen as a remnant of feudalism, a product of Guo the Blind. Gradually, Guo the Blind's name faded from memory, and so did his son's; he acquired a new name—Dogzi.
I witnessed Guo Huaiyi's growth through Zhou Compass's time reversal. I saw him watching his mother being strangled to death by Guo the Blind while naked, witnessing his father being beaten day and night, and enduring everyone calling him Dogzi as if he were a monster. He often hid in dark corners of houses with a fierce expression, repeatedly cutting into his own legs and arms with blades to draw blood, then bandaging himself with Guo the Blind's herbs.
Before the villagers of Bright Moon Village, he was always an injured and dirty child, his eyes filled with weakness and fear. Yet every night he would hide under an oil lamp reading an old yellowed book. He began to study its illustrations and text day and night; some obscure patterns he couldn't remember were carved into his skin with a knife each time causing him immense pain.
I also saw one night when he held a sharp knife against sleeping Guo the Blind's neck. He hesitated for a long time before retreating to his own side room while Guo the Blind opened his eyes, tears streaming down his face.
Guo Huaiyi was frequently chased and beaten by boys from the village. One night, while he was secretly reading Dao Book, he was discovered by Militia—a boy peering through his window at midnight. A large group of children burst in to confront him.
Panicking, Guo Huaiyi stuffed the book into his clothes and climbed over the wall to run to Old Man's house, asking Old Man to keep it safe for him until he could return for it.
Guo the Blind and Guo Huaiyi endured ten years of torment together. By the time Calamity ended, fourteen-year-old Guo Huaiyi had become accustomed to being called Dogzi; no one remembered his real name.
When that Guo Huaiyi excitedly ran to Old Man's house, Old Man's first words made him burst into tears.
“Dogzi, what are you doing here?”
Guo Huaiyi cried uncontrollably; he didn’t want to be called Dogzi anymore, but Old Man could no longer recall Guo Huaiyi’s name.
In that era when conscience was devoured by dogs, who still cared about Guo Huaiyi?
Since then, Guo Huaiyi had not sought out the Old Man again. He became incredibly silent, even ignoring Guo the Blind when he tried to talk to him.
One night, Guo the Blind was suddenly awakened by a foul smell. He quietly got up and walked to Guo Huaiyi's room, only to see Guo Huaiyi applying herbs to his body. Almost every part of him was covered in wounds from knife cuts, except for his back, which was almost entirely unscathed. The wounds were numerous and deep, some oozing black blood that would not heal, emitting a terrible stench.
These wounds came together to form an incredibly bizarre pattern.
The sight of this pattern terrified Guo the Blind. He rushed forward and slapped Guo Huaiyi, scolding him, "You wretched creature! Who told you to learn the Evil Techniques of the Ghost Gate? Without a master like Old Scholar guiding you, that dark magic will cost you your life! If you die, how am I supposed to live on?"
Guo Huaiyi's expression turned fierce; his face had become gaunt and sharp. He threw a knife to Guo the Blind and instructed him to complete the unfinished pattern on his back.
Guo the Blind trembled as he looked at the tattered Dao Book that he couldn't even understand. His heart was chaotic and anxious. All this time, he had thought that Guo Huaiyi's injuries were caused by the children of the Village, never realizing that his son had secretly practiced the Evil Techniques of the Ghost Gate for so many years.
That night, following Guo Huaiyi's instructions, he carved all the patterns onto his back. In an era just after ten years of turmoil, Guo the Blind could not find Poppy to provide anesthesia for Guo Huaiyi. Despite the pain numbing his entire body, Guo Huaiyi gritted his teeth and did not utter a sound. Eventually, he collapsed into a pool of blood and lost consciousness, his limbs twitching involuntarily.
Guo the Blind held Guo Huaiyi in shock and cried out in despair. He ran into the yard and shouted, "Old man! This is the consequence of ruining my Dao Body! I do not harm mortals, yet they insult me! My son and I will make you regret this in the future; everyone will pay a heavy price for it!"
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