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Living Funeral
After I flipped the table, Yang Xiu was immediately enraged.
"Damn it," I said, feeling a bit nervous. "Are you trying to perform a ritual to harm me?"
Yang Xiu replied, "Damn it, I'm a Ghost Hunter from Zhongnan Mountain. Are you a ghost or a human? If you're a ghost, then I'll take action against you."
I was taken aback by his shouting.
Taking a deep breath, I said, "Damn it, do you see the people coming out of the house as ghosts? This is Yang Zhuang; why do I feel such heavy Yin Qi here?"
Yang Xiu's temper flared up as he retorted, "Just look back at yourself!"
At that moment, the fire pit for burning Joss Paper under the table had been extinguished by the weight of the table, leaving the scene in disarray. I turned around and saw a young man resembling a sword-wielding Taoist emerge. He looked to be around thirty years old, with his hair tied up high and a wooden hairpin woven through.
I was momentarily stunned. Yang Xiu said, "You see for yourself whether he's human or ghost."
I quickly snapped out of it and approached to inspect him. Aside from his complexion being as pale as Yang Xiu's, he looked just like a living person.
The young Taoist noticed my scrutiny and introduced himself. "I'm Wu Ning, a friend of Yang Xiu's. We live in this courtyard together."
As he introduced himself, I continued to stare at him. My voice was weak as I asked suspiciously, "Are you really alive?"
Wu Ning replied, "Absolutely genuine."
I was thrown into confusion.
Yang Xiu said, "Do you believe me now? I'm a Ghost Hunter from Zhongnan Mountain. If I wanted to harm you, you'd be dead by now."
I glanced at Wu Ning, who smiled and said, "Is there some misunderstanding between you two?"
Yang Xiu sighed at that moment, his voice filled with frustration. "Brother Wu, you don't understand. I've saved him time and again, yet he always suspects that I harbor ill intentions. Can good people like us really be treated this way?"
Wu Ning turned to me and said, "Brother, you must have misunderstood Yang."
I looked at Wu Ning and asked, "Where are you from?"
With a smile, Wu Ning replied, "I come from Longhu Mountain, where I serve Zhang Daoling, Master Zhang."
A wave of unease washed over me. Could it be that both Yang Xiu and Wu Ning were legitimate practitioners, both engaged in ghost hunting? My heart sank.
Yang Xiu asked, "Fei, do you believe me now?"
At that moment, I found no reason to argue against him. Whether I believed or not, I had to accept the situation. I paused for a few seconds before forcing a smile and saying, "It must all be a misunderstanding!"
Yang Xiu snorted in response, clearly still upset.
Wu Ning then suggested with a grin, "How about this? I'll play the mediator. You two can reconcile for my sake. What do you say?"
He took my hand and then reached out to grasp Yang Xiu's hand as well.
However, when Wu Ning held my hand, I froze. Having worked in a funeral home before, I knew the temperature of a dead person's hand. The moment Wu Ning's hand touched mine, I realized it felt exactly like that of a corpse.
Moreover, touching his hand was indistinguishable from the experience of handling the hands of the deceased in the funeral home.
He quickly brought our hands together—mine and Yang Xiu's—and said to us, "How about you two give me face and reconcile?"
I smiled on the surface, but inside I was cursing. This was definitely not normal; perhaps Wu Ning wasn't a good person after all. My thoughts shifted uneasily.
Yang Xiu maintained his stern expression. I took the initiative to grasp Yang Xiu's hand and said, "I'm sorry, Brother Yang. I've misunderstood you. I apologize."
Yang Xiu replied, "Fei, as Ghost Hunters from Zhongnan Mountain, we are dedicated to slaying demons and eliminating evil. When faced with injustices like yours, I will certainly step in; otherwise, it would go against our principles."
"Wu Ning smiled and said, 'Yes! Brother Yang, he is such a warm-hearted person, truly a model for us cultivators.'
As I watched the two of them boast about each other, I felt a sense of resistance inside me. Damn it, I've gotten on a pirate ship this time; my instincts told me that Wu Ning must be hiding something.
However, I couldn't pinpoint what it was at the moment.
I said to Yang Xiu, 'Let me help you tidy up.'
Yang Xiu replied, 'No need. The ritual has been disrupted; it won't work the second time. How about this: let's do it again tomorrow night. Can you help me with something then?'
I asked, 'What do you need?'
Yang Xiu said, 'It's very simple; I'll tell you tomorrow night.'
I nodded. Yang Xiu and Wu Ning exchanged a glance while I smiled in between them. At that moment, my mind began to clear up a bit.
Yang Xiu sighed and said, 'Forget it; it's nothing. Everyone should go back and rest. Fei, come with me; I'll arrange a room for you.'
Sounds good.
If I were to fall out with them now, there would be no good outcome. Wu Luo wasn't exactly a good person either; this place was a damn ghost town. I took a deep breath—Yin Zhuang, Yang Zhuang, Ghost Village—no wandering outside.
According to Yang Xiu, this place was Yang Zhuang, but my instincts told me it was actually Yin Zhuang.
So could Yang Zhuang be in the courtyard on the right? And was Ghost Village where Wu Luo and the others lived?
I pondered these thoughts as I followed behind Yang Xiu. He quickly led me to a room. After I entered, Yang Xiu said to me, 'I'm going to sleep now.'
I responded with an 'Mm.' As he left, he reminded me to find him if anything came up and to remember his three points.
Sounds good."
Yang Xiu, take care. I finally felt a sense of relief. I pulled out my phone to turn it on, but before it could boot up, the screen went black—dead battery. I couldn't reach Zhang Pangzi and the others. They had been at the foot of the mountain, but we had clearly come up together.
Could it be that someone took them down later?
Moreover, it seemed like the road to Mountain Lodge was blocked. Would those two even be able to come back up? Damn it, the thought chilled me to the bone. If they didn't come back, that would mean I was left in a lurch. With my limited skills, how could I survive here?
I didn't dare sleep that night. Lying in bed, my eyes were heavy, but my mind was racing with thoughts.
I don't know how long it had been, but just as I was about to drift off, there was a sudden knock at the door. I jumped in surprise but quickly calmed myself down. I shouted, "Who is it?"
A voice replied from outside, "It's me."
That voice wasn't Yang Xiu's. I responded, "Who are you?"
"I'm Wu Ning."
Damn it! Hearing Wu Ning's name made me feel uneasy for some reason. I asked, "What do you want?"
Wu Ning said, "Open the door first; I have something important to discuss with you. You're called Fei, right?"
I confirmed with a grunt.
Wu Ning continued, "I want to save your life."
Damn it! Another person trying to pull me into a trap. In West San Village, who could possibly save my life? I didn't trust anyone anymore. I replied to Wu Ning, "You want my life? Wasn't Yang Xiu supposed to save me?"
I had learned to be cautious; having offended Wu Luo, I needed to find some sort of 'support' here.
Wu Ning said, "Do you really believe in Yang Xiu? Let me tell you the truth: Yang Xiu deceived you. This place used to be Yang Zhuang, but in reality, it's Yin Zhuang."
Listening to Wu Ning's words, I held my tongue for now; what he said aligned closely with what I had been thinking.
I guessed this place was Yin Zhuang, and indeed it was. Yang Xiu had deceived me; he surely had ill intentions. Wu Ning said to me, "If you trust me, I can take you down the mountain right now."
Honestly, after hearing those words, I felt a flicker of temptation.
I replied to Wu Ning, "Why should I trust you?" At that moment, I hadn't even opened the door.
Wu Ning responded, "Your name is Chen Fei, isn't it?"
Damn it, this bastard knows my full name! I was momentarily stunned and then asked, "How do you know?"
Wu Ning said, "Someone told me."
I inquired who it was. I thought to myself that this was really eerie! Wu Ning seemed to know quite a bit. He quickly added, "Chen Fei, you don't need to worry about who it is. I promised him I wouldn't say anything. Besides, Yang Xiu is just a Yin Person. If you don't leave now, there won't be another chance tomorrow night."
I pondered in the room and didn't answer immediately. Could this bastard really be trusted?
Earlier, he had been laughing and joking with Yang Xiu, calling him brother. Now he wanted to save me? This was truly bizarre!
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