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墨書 Inktalez
"What kind of person are you?"
Before the little girl could defend herself, she was suddenly lifted into the air by an unseen force and slammed against the wall, leaving a dent in the surface. She spat out a mouthful of blood.
At the same time, a dark shadow surged from behind her, rushing toward us. From a short distance away, I heard the roar of a beast.
A hand quietly extended before me, its dark sleeve intricately embroidered with gold thread patterns that resembled flowers but also looked like clouds. It was my first time seeing such delicate gold thread, its pure color forming fine yet vivid outlines.
The pale fingers traced the air lightly, and as a palm-sized array of light flickered into existence, the gold thread patterns on the dark sleeve vanished. It was then I realized that this thing was alive.
With a gentle flick of the fingers, a beam of golden light shot toward the dark shadow. Before I could fully comprehend what was happening, I heard the little girl let out another muffled groan, blood continuously flowing from her mouth, casting a flickering shadow on the wall that appeared somewhat blurred.
The little girl climbed up from the ground, warily looking at us. "Who are you?"
"Just a moment ago, you were talking about me. Have you forgotten so quickly?"
Jun Chong landed gracefully, raising his sleeve to reveal his true form, enveloping me within it. The soft fabric brushed against my arm where I had been injured, causing me to gasp and furrow my brow.
Jun Chong merely glanced at me, and a flash of murderous intent erupted from his deep black eyes. The darkness in his gaze gradually turned red, alternating between black and crimson like two gemstones responding to each other—a beautiful transformation.
"You hurt her."
The simple question was laced with intense anger. I shivered slightly and opened my mouth to speak when I saw the little girl suddenly kneel down with a thud, performing an elaborate bow toward Jun Chong.
This left me wide-eyed in surprise.
"Tao Wu pays respects to Lord of the Abyss." The little girl's body trembled as she spoke, her voice quivering. "Tao Wu did not know she was of Lord's essence; only because her blood is rare beyond measure can it open a shortcut to Underworld Ghost Path. Once the Ghost Path is opened and Evil Spirits are released, more malevolent beings will serve Lord. We await Lord's return at all times; thus, I am willing to do anything to fulfill this bloodline."
"Tao Wu?" Jun Chong murmured those two words, his expression turning serious. "Just you?"
"Has Lord forgotten?" The little girl looked up at Jun Chong with curiosity. "Seven years ago, my Miao Clan was harmed by others; Great-Grandma became half-demon overnight. I could not escape either; my soul was trapped in this hospital until that day when I met Lord. Lord implanted Tao Wu's shadow into my soul, making me Tao Wu's container in this world and taught me how to set up Blood Sacrifice Array to open Underworld Ghost Path."
As she spoke, I suddenly recalled her mentioning that she had opened Underworld Ghost Path seven years ago. At that time, I had been interrupted before I could ask further questions; now that it was brought up again, it felt even stranger.
Moreover, Tao Wu is one of the ancient Four Great Beasts. How could it choose a soul as its Container?
The strangest part is why Jun Chong is referred to as the Lord of the Abyss by her, and why she had seen Jun Chong seven years ago, yet Jun Chong does not remember.
Between what is true and what is false, I am utterly confused.
Jun Chong did not speak immediately. From my perspective, I could see him frowning slightly, his eyes flickering with doubt, clearly hesitant about what the little girl had said.
"Then tell me, why did you successfully set up the Blood Sacrifice Array seven years ago but did not open the Underworld Ghost Path until today?"
The little girl dared not hide a single word from Jun Chong. "Because the one who truly possesses the ancient blood will only appear seven years later. Back then, it was merely the Lord testing to confirm the entrance to the Ghost Gate. Although the Blood Sacrifice Array is a shortcut to open the Underworld Ghost Path, it is little known that it needs to be set up near the Ghost Gate in order to bypass the gatekeeper and open the Ghost Path." She paused for a moment, slightly raising her head with curiosity. "Have these Lords of the Netherworld forgotten all this?"
Jun Chong remained silent, his lips pressed together. Suddenly, a nurse walked in from outside, accompanied by a faint cracking sound that sent an ominous feeling through me.
"Jun Chong, this place has been sealed with a barrier. How did she get in?"
Her eyes were vacant and lifeless, but as she approached the door of the Blood Sacrifice Array, her gaze trembled and became clear. Upon seeing the bloodstains on the floor and the black mist seeping from the room, she screamed in terror, "Ah—help!"
In her attempt to escape, she was inadvertently ensnared by the black mist that enveloped her completely. In an instant, her clothes hung loosely on her frame, revealing her ghastly white bones.
A chill ran through me; I hadn’t expected Miasma to be so powerful.
The scream startled those around us. Some patients still remaining in their rooms opened their doors one by one, disbelieving that they had been tainted by Miasma. Meanwhile, security personnel patrolling outside rushed over upon hearing the commotion.
"Someone has broken the barrier; we need to leave."
Without hesitation, Jun Chong picked me up. I pointed at Molin on the ground. "What about him?"
Jun Chong frowned and ordered the little girl, "Take him with us."
"Yes." The little girl did not hesitate; she picked up Molin and leaped after us.
Jun Chong led us all the way to the rooftop of the highest floor. At that moment, dark clouds swirled in the sky, and distant thunder rumbled as moonlight flickered intermittently—a scene both eerie and extraordinary.
“Jun Chong, if Miasma is that powerful, many people will die if it spreads. Do you have a way to stop it?” I wasn't a saint, but I didn't want too many people to die, especially with Lin You and many innocent people still in the hospital. “Since opening the Ghost Path was your command to the little girl back then, you must have a way to stop it, right?”
Jun Chong lowered his gaze at me. “Do you believe it's me?”
I widened my eyes in an instant, glancing at the little girl who was humbly standing at a distance. Leaning closer to Jun Chong's ear, I whispered, “Isn't that person you?”
“Seven years ago, I was still in the Underworld.”
A chill ran down my spine, and my heart raced. If that person back then wasn't Jun Chong, who else could it be?
Jun Chong paused before saying, “However, Tao Wu was once one of my beasts. Shortly after I subdued it, that incident happened. It should have been sealed or dead, but the shadow on her just now indeed carried Tao Wu's aura. Perhaps someone really hid Tao Wu's shadow inside her body seven years ago.”
“Why would they do that?”
“I don't know. The Four Great Beasts are all manifestations of resentment. Although I don't know who did this, so far it has been more beneficial than harmful to me. I need help to regain my body; I'll keep it for now.” Jun Chong frowned slightly as he continued, “But as for the Underworld Ghost Path, I currently lack the ability to stop it.”
If even Jun Chong couldn't stop it, who else could?
“Will she know?”
As soon as I finished speaking, the entire building suddenly shook violently, giving off a feeling of an earthquake. I grabbed onto Jun Chong's body to steady myself as he said, “This is bad; we've been set up.”
“What?”
Jun Chong ignored me and spoke to the little girl. “I'll be back shortly. If you dare harm her in any way, I'll take your life.”
“Yes.”
I didn't understand what Jun Chong meant, but I knew he was going to the Blood Sacrifice Array. If it wasn't him seven years ago, then that person had been waiting for seven years and would definitely appear tonight. The Underworld Ghost Path was their only target.
The little girl set Molin aside and quietly watched me before suddenly saying, “Big Sister, are you wondering why I'm doing this?”
I was taken aback as the little girl continued on her own. “Actually, back then I was filled with resentment. I couldn't accept that my family would conspire against Great-Grandma for money because I had been with Great-Grandma since birth; we had a very close bond. I remember that night I had a strange dream; it was in the Miao Clan's Siheyuan. In front of Great-Grandma's bed window, I saw Grandpa personally untying Great-Grandma. When he pulled out the white knife, blood splattered everywhere. Even though it was just a dream, I felt a warm sticky substance on my face; it was Great-Grandma's blood. Until her last moment, she kept telling me to run away. At that moment, a Black Cat jumped onto the bed. A few days later came my surgery day; it was supposed to be a minor operation, but I died on the operating table. Only when my soul floated away did I realize that day my mother had bribed the doctor and killed me alive. I didn't understand why my mother wanted me dead; all I felt was a deep pain in my chest.
I floated around the hospital as a Spirit, absorbing its resentment. At first, I didn't know what resentment was, but every midnight I could hear Great-Grandma calling my name; however, I couldn't leave the hospital. Until one day someone from our village came to the hospital for treatment and revealed the truth: he said my Great-Grandma had been possessed by a cat and turned into Cat-Faced Granny who killed everyone in the Miao Clan and even ate many children from our village. So someone hired a master to seal her away.
Although I couldn't leave, I could feel her pain; she longed for liberation but had no way out. As time passed, I found myself growing stronger and able to do many things at will; the first thing was to kill that doctor who caused my death. Just when I felt powerless to commit murder, Lord of the Abyss appeared before me and asked if I wanted revenge and if I wanted Great-Grandma to no longer suffer. I said yes; then you know what happened next.
However, my body seemed unchanged; I've always remained this small. But I've continuously provided Great-Grandma with children and the most nourishing Hearts; she resisted but had no choice because without them she would suffer even more. Recently though, Great-Grandma has been in even more pain. To alleviate her suffering, I've sought out more children for her in hopes that once the Ghost Path is opened, I can ask Lord to save Grandma’s life.
But I know I've stained myself with much blood and resentment; it's something I'll find hard to cleanse in this lifetime. I'm not asking for anything—just for Great-Grandma's safety—and I'm willing to atone for what I've done.”
The little girl wiped away her tears, her eyes red. I recalled that day in the old house; indeed, the Cat-Faced Granny had been schemed against by her own family. I never expected that for the sake of money, they would dare to turn against their own flesh and blood.
If it weren't for this, would today's events have unfolded?
Grandpa always said that everything is interconnected, that every event has its ties. A single spark can ignite a prairie fire; how much more so with these matters?
As we fell into silence, Jun Chong appeared silently behind me. I turned to him and immediately asked, "What happened?"
"One good thing and one bad thing. Which do you want to hear?"
"The good thing."
"The Ghost Path has been sealed."
Hearing this, I was instantly overjoyed. "Who did it?"
"That's the bad thing."
"What do you mean?"
Jun Chong furrowed his brow, his cool lips pressed tightly together into a thin line.
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