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墨書 Inktalez
Human Sacrifice
Guo the Blind and Huang the Lame had reached a temporary agreement and were making their way up the mountain together. Huang San'er and three young men cast hostile glances at me, making gestures across their throats. I pretended not to see and followed behind Guo the Blind.
Once we reached Winding Mountain Road, Huang the Lame and Guo the Blind instructed us to wait in place while they split into two groups to scout both ends of the road.
Although I wasn't entirely sure of their abilities, I knew that whenever someone died in Futu Ridge, people would seek them out for burial sites or to assess feng shui for building houses. It was likely that a careful inspection of Winding Mountain Road would reveal something useful.
After Guo the Blind and Huang the Lame left, Huang San'er looked at me with a wicked grin and said, "Yang Hao, it seems you haven't learned your lesson from before. You've grown some skills over the years."
"With a blind fool like you yapping away, I'll just cut your mouth open so you can keep bragging," one of the young men behind Huang San'er said as he flicked open his knife, swaggering toward me.
"Old Five," Huang San'er frowned at the young man who seemed ready to act.
"Brother San'er, we won't blame you if you can't act with your grandfather watching over you. But this kid doesn't even recognize his own parents anymore. If he has offended us, I'm taking his life," the young man seemed emboldened by Huang Saner's warning.
I took a few steps back, but as soon as he saw my fear, he quickened his pace toward me. Although I could be somewhat slow-witted at times, I wasn't foolish; we were all ordinary people without martial training. If someone came at me with a knife, my only option was to run.
Seeing me turn to flee, the young man chased after me with his knife drawn, clearly intent on not stopping until I was dead.
When people are angry, their intelligence drops to zero; they act without considering the consequences. I once witnessed a group of people arguing over a few jokes in a restaurant during my college days. What started as playful banter escalated into a brawl that ended in death.
Not everyone in this world is kind-hearted; some may kill impulsively and later regret it, while others believe in survival of the fittest and think it's natural for those deemed worthless to die. Their aggressive nature leads them to push aside anyone who might block their path without regard for others' feelings.
This isn't an analysis of others' characters but rather an understanding that my own character will inevitably change due to experiences around me. The idea that someone's life could be taken over mere words became increasingly apparent to me; it made me realize that many people in this world are simply not worth pitying.
That was the first time someone had come at me with a knife. In a panic, I ran toward the direction where Guo the Blind was. My limited exposure to society had led me to underestimate how serious they were about taking my life. I knew that if I slowed down even for a moment and he caught up to me, all it would take was one stab to my neck or heart for me to die.
I ran for a few minutes, and when the young man saw he couldn't catch up to me, he told me to wait and that he would go home to kill my family. I hid in the woods near Winding Mountain Road to catch my breath and vaguely saw a figure on the road that looked like Guo the Blind.
"Old Guo!" I called out.
"Who?" The person seemed startled, but when he turned to look at me, I confirmed it was indeed Guo the Blind.
I ran out from the darkness, still shaken. Guo the Blind frowned when he saw me and asked, "What are you doing here?"
I gasped for breath, "One of them just tried to kill me with a knife."
Guo the Blind sighed, "It's my fault for not anticipating this. I overestimated their temperament. You're not hurt, are you?"
"No," I shook my head.
Guo the Blind said, "Let's go back. There’s nothing unusual here."
When we reached the entrance of Winding Mountain Road, Huang San'er and his gang were still waiting there, each with a cigarette dangling from their mouths. When they saw me following Guo the Blind, they began to laugh mockingly.
"Look at that! An old dog bringing a pup back. You were running faster than a dog just now, and now you dare to come back," the young man who had chased me earlier laughed heartily.
"Did you want to kill Yang Hao?" Guo the Blind asked the young man.
"Yeah, so what? You blind old fool. Others might be afraid of you, but I'm not. What kind of society is this where you're still pulling these Deity tricks? If it weren't for my mom begging me to come with Huang the Cripple, I wouldn't believe your nonsense," the young man said as he approached Guo the Blind.
"Old Five, come back," Huang San'er called from behind.
Guo the Blind chuckled softly, "The young people today are much bolder than we were back in our day."
"Always talking about young people, what the hell are you pretending to be?" The young man grabbed Guo the Blind by the collar, holding a knife in his other hand. He leaned closer to Guo and said, "Do you believe I’ll stab you?"
I stood behind Guo the Blind, feeling uneasy as I watched the short-statured Guo being held up by the young man. Just as I was about to step forward to pull him away, Guo suddenly blew a breath towards the young man.
The young man quickly released his grip, coughing violently. He bent over, clutching his throat as if something had lodged in it. Huang San'er and a few others rushed forward to help him, one of them asking, "Zhang Kun, what happened to you?"
The young man named Zhang Kun didn’t respond. His eyes were filled with rage as he glared at Guo the Blind, his face flushed and his hands clawing at his throat as if trying to tear it open.
"So it's Zhang Kun from Dagu Village. I'll remember that," Guo the Blind said expressionlessly.
"What did you do to him? My grandfather will be here soon," Huang San'er asked Guo with a hint of fear in his eyes. Although he was the strongest among the younger generation, having followed Huang the Lame and learned some of Feng Shui Master’s peculiar techniques, he knew that offending someone connected to Feng Shui Master could lead to ruin—often without even knowing how it happened.
"What’s Brother Guo getting so worked up about? As they say, a newborn calf is not afraid of tigers; kids are bound to be reckless," Huang the Lame emerged from the shadows, having witnessed what had just transpired.
"Have you ever seen a calf that’s been around for over twenty years still acting like one?" Guo the Blind retorted sharply.
"Well..." Huang the Lame was momentarily at a loss for words.
"Grandpa, look at Old Five! This old thing blew on him and now he’s like this," Huang San'er said.
Huang the Lame turned to look at the still-coughing Zhang Kun and kicked him in the chest. Zhang Kun immediately spat out a mouthful of thick phlegm and then knelt on the ground, retching. He reached into his throat as if trying to pull something out. Before long, he extracted a leech that was only half its length.
Zhang Kun's face turned pale with fright as he hurriedly discarded the leech. It squirmed on the ground for a moment before dying. Seeing this, Zhang Kun felt nauseous again and bent over to vomit, spewing yellow bile from his mouth.
"Is that a parasite?" Huang the Lame frowned deeply at the sight and looked at Guo the Blind. "I didn’t expect you to have such sinister tricks up your sleeve. He’s just a young man; do you really want to take his life over a few harsh words?"
Guo the Blind snorted and replied, "A few harsh words? He had a knife pressed against my neck! He chased Yang Hao for several miles with that knife; it looks like he’s used to bullying people. I’m more than willing to be a ruthless person who keeps these local bullies in check."
"Old man, I'm going to kill you!" Zhang Kun shouted angrily, brandishing his knife as he charged forward. However, he barely took two steps before collapsing to the ground, his body limp and unable to hold onto the knife.
Huang the Lame looked on in confusion at the half-dead Zhang Kun sprawled on the ground. He couldn't understand how Guo the Blind, a Feng Shui Master, could resort to using such dark arts. The use of poison was a malevolent technique specific to the Miaojiang Mountains, something he had never encountered in his life. All he knew was that it was made from venomous creatures raised over many years, originally part of witchcraft—something that was nearly impossible to defend against.
"Did Old Scholar teach you this?" Huang the Lame asked.
Guo the Blind replied, "Old Scholar has traveled far and wide for many years, so it's no surprise he has been to the Miaojiang Mountains. Given the dangers of the world, it's not unusual for him to know a few methods of killing. He only passed down this one technique to me. It's a pity about my mountain leech; it has been with me for five years and was usually used for healing. Now it's dead, but that doesn't count as witchcraft."
Huang the Lame's expression shifted between uncertainty and skepticism as he regarded Guo the Blind's words. With a forced smile that didn't reach his eyes, he said, "Let's not dwell on that. Let's talk business instead. Have you found any clues, my friend?"
Guo the Blind shook his head. "No, Brother Huang, do you have any leads?"
Huang the Lame also shook his head. "Not a single clue. My compass hasn't shown..."
Suddenly, Huang the Lame's eyes widened in shock, and his voice trailed off. Guo the Blind quickly turned to look at the compass in Huang's hand. The compass was engraved with various Bagua symbols and mysterious markings, and at that moment, its needle was trembling and pointing in a specific direction.
Huang the Lame turned around; behind him was the cliff at the end of Winding Mountain Road. He stood at the edge of the cliff, gazing down below. Guo the Blind also looked down in astonishment and said, "It seems like the problem lies with the cliff face!"
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