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墨書 Inktalez
Chapter 09: End of the Demon Realm (Part Six)
My mind went blank in an instant, and I couldn't piece together the fragmented memories. I had no recollection of how I ended up in the hands of Li Gui or how I found myself inside a wooden box. All I remembered was that I had come out with Qin Jian to search for Bone Jade at Black Water River and Ten Li Slope; everything else was a complete blur.
As I saw Li Gui about to climb up and level with me, I instinctively reached out to block his advance. To my shock, he opened his mouth to bite, revealing two incredibly sharp teeth. The first thought that crossed my mind was that I had encountered a Zombie.
Zombies had become quite rare in this era. Unlike typical Zombies, these ones possessed thought; they had everything a human did. There were many reasons for their survival—some were artificially preserved by those who understood Evil Arts and witchcraft, who would take money to help keep the deceased alive in a state of limbo. These half-dead beings were referred to as Zombies.
These Zombies were kept with the hope of one day finding a suitable body to revive them through the right circumstances.
Another type of Zombie formed unintentionally; these usually didn't last long and would rot away after being buried deep underground.
What was hard for me to believe was that this particular Zombie was Li Gui!
I couldn't accept it—how could Li Gui possibly end up like this? As doubt filled my mind, I bit my tongue until it bled, gathering a mouthful of bloody saliva, waiting for him to pounce before spitting it out at him.
My grandfather had taught me that as a pure Yang body, even my blood could serve as a weapon against evil entities.
I feigned a move to dodge Li Gui's gaping mouth and held my breath. This was something my grandfather had instructed: when encountering a Zombie, hold your breath so it can't locate you. Zombies relied on inhaling human breath to identify their targets.
By holding my breath, I became invisible to him. He flailed aimlessly, roaring with his mouth wide open, and the strands of drool that followed looked utterly disgusting. This Zombie resembled Li Gui but also didn't; there were hints of familiarity in its appearance.
I considered myself quite adept at holding my breath, but it wasn't a sustainable strategy. After just a few minutes, I could no longer endure it and decided to breathe again.
As soon as I inhaled, the motionless Zombie sprang into action, crawling toward me excitedly. While I lacked many skills, playing dead was one of my strengths; that thin coffin at home was where I practiced lying still when contemplating matters.
Lying in the coffin with my hands resting on my chest, I suppressed my breath and appeared lifeless. Once, I even scared Fatty so much that he shouted for Grandpa, thinking I was dead.
But my ability to feign death was top-notch.
Once again holding my breath, the Zombie lost its target and froze in place, motionless.
I secretly gathered a mouthful of blood foam, then took a deep breath. The Zombie moved, eagerly crawling towards me. Closer, closer—I could smell its stench. Then, with wide eyes, I spat out a mouthful of blood. The Zombie let out a desperate wail as its already hideous face instantly rotted away, countless blood blisters bursting forth. One of its eyeballs fell off and landed on my Neck. I grabbed it, grimacing in disgust, and threw it away without knowing where it went.
The Zombie, now without its eyeball and unable to see its target, was in severe decay. As it howled in despair, it pushed itself back with all its might, causing the wooden box lid to burst open with a loud bang. A beam of light shone in, accelerating the decomposition of the Zombie's face.
It screamed and groped around, searching for the lost eyeball.
As the light penetrated and illuminated me, it felt as if I had gained some sort of power. Perhaps the evil force within me was being driven away by this sudden light. In any case, with the light appearing, I could move again. I stood up and looked around—a forest surrounded me. Leaves covered the ground, and birds chirped in the trees; it felt as if I had died and been buried here.
Struggling to get up, I grasped a vine on the ground for support. Just as I was about to climb up, the Zombie suddenly grabbed my Pants Leg. I kicked out fiercely, and with a crack, one of its arms was brutally broken off. Crawling out from the wooden box onto the ground, I greedily inhaled the fresh air and saw fresh soil piled up along with newly placed incense sticks and a wooden sign.
The sign had words on it: Grave of Ma Qi.
Damn! Am I dead?
Looking around, this place felt familiar; there was a scent that reminded me of something—trees and a path overgrown with weeds.
After a moment, I felt like I had forgotten something important. Indeed, I had been so busy observing my surroundings that I forgot about the Zombie. Looking back, that damned creature had already rotted into a puddle of flesh mixed into the soil, leaving only a dry skeleton and an eyeball beside the wooden box.
The Zombie was still a corpse; although only bones remained, it had transformed from life to death into what it was now. As a Mortician, I had to fulfill my duty to ensure that the Deceased did not rot away in the wilderness.
So I quickly tidied up the skeleton, clasped my hands together, and reverently recited the Vajra Sutra. After repairing the wooden box lid, I gently placed the corpse inside in order before sealing it up properly and solemnly burying this creature that had just tried to replace me.
Once everything was settled, I followed the path out and discovered wheel tracks on the ground. Beneath them were water stains; scattered weeds lay flattened without any chance of rising again—had it rained here last night? The leaves on nearby plants still bore traces of moisture.
I crouched down to examine the wheel tracks closely; they were deeply imprinted in the soft earth. However, there were no other signs around—no footprints from whoever buried me.
I wondered if these wheel tracks belonged to Qin Jian.
Qin Jian's vehicle was newly purchased; its wheels would leave deep impressions when rolling over soft ground soaked by rain.
With those deep wheel tracks on the road and the Tomb in the forest nearby, I thought—could it be that Qin Jian buried me? Sigh! At this point, it didn’t seem to matter who buried me; what mattered was that I needed to find Qin Jian. Perhaps following this path would lead me to some clues. I gazed toward the end of the road.
There was actually no end at all; the end was submerged in a haze of gray mist. Deep within the fog, it seemed like there was something else—large, indistinct shapes that resembled a village. To be honest, my stomach growled with hunger. If a village truly existed, then there must be food.
Thinking of food, a warm scene appeared before my eyes.
A bowl of fragrant fried eggs, and Zhou Mengyao's ever-smiling face emerged in my mind.
Sister Zhou, are you doing well?
I am just this sentimental, reminiscing about the past, thinking of her death, and I couldn't help but feel hatred towards Spirit Snake.
When I thought of Spirit Snake, another person came to mind—Han Mi.
Han Mi, where are you? In that dream just now, I would rather it be real. However, in the dream, you were taken away by a kite. If you were to appear before me in reality, I would never let you go.
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