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According to the records of "Mausoleum Secrets," the Jealous Woman Ghost was a resentful woman in life, abandoned by her husband, and transformed into an Evil Spirit after death, unable to let go of her Vengeful Spirit. From Er Ya's level of resentment, it can be inferred that she died at least three months ago. Moreover, Er Ya can freely switch between the ethereal and physical realms, indicating that she is a calamity ghost, as new ghosts typically appear in an ethereal form and require some Daoist practice to manifest physically, like a Ghost Infant. As for who trapped Sister Lian's soul, we will need to wait until Sister Lian wakes up to ask her. In any case, it can be concluded that the true culprit behind the incidents in Baisha Village is a cunning Jealous Woman Ghost, hidden from view and capable of killing invisibly.
"Er Ya is now a Corpse Ghost!"
Lu Jianguo affirmed. "If the Corpse Ghost of the Jealous Woman Ghost is this fierce, then we are in real trouble!"
Lu Jianguo got up and turned his back to look deep into the mountains. He appeared calm, but what I saw was fear.
In ancient times, those eaten by tigers would turn into Corpse Ghosts after death, luring others to be devoured by the tiger, serving as its Corpse Ghost. This explanation of Corpse Ghosts can be understood through the psychological concept of "Stockholm Syndrome." The victim Er Ya's Vengeful Spirit and Obsession run so deep that she can only satisfy her twisted psyche by using the power of the Jealous Woman Ghost to persecute weaker individuals. Over time, her hatred for the Jealous Woman Ghost transforms into admiration, ultimately becoming a Corpse Ghost herself. Er Ya is like a patient suffering from Stockholm Syndrome in the ghost realm.
"If the Corpse Ghost has been captured, the Jealous Woman Ghost will surely hide for a while!"
"What can we do to find the Jealous Woman Ghost?"
"Don't rush! Let's go check out Er Ya's house together later. When ghosts want to harm someone, they usually target the first victim."
Er Ya's home is located under a bamboo grove at the eastern end of the village; it is a simple structure made of mud and wood with an ancient style. It has been empty for two months, and everything inside is covered in thick dust. Gao Lao led us into Er Ya's room, which was very simple; there was an old floral bed with many characters for "hate" written on its wooden boards.
A broken table held a photo of Er Ya that looked exactly like the one we had seen last night. On the back of the photo was a hasty scrawl in pencil that read "Let me go," written in a hurried manner with some strokes missing.
What could have filled Er Ya with such resentment? What did she mean by writing "Let me go" on the back of her photo? This series of questions echoed in my mind endlessly, leaving me perplexed. After looking around Er Ya's house without finding anything else, we left with Gao Lao.
"This is troublesome. Xia, do you see any clues?"
"I'm not sure either, but I feel that whatever is haunting Baisha Village came along with Er Ya!"
"Yes, that's about right!"
In Baisha Village, during the month when Er Ya went missing, three or four young people died. Moreover, we have confirmed that Er Ya has become a Corpse Ghost! It is even more certain that this entity is targeting Er Ya. Furthermore, it specifically preys on young people, skinning them alive. As for the sudden deaths of Da Ya and Er Ya's Mother, we are still at a loss.
"Gao Lao, although I don't have any major leads, I've thought it over carefully. Er Ya is the beauty of Baisha Village; the Jealous Woman Ghost uses her beauty to lure Youngsters. After killing ten people, its power increases significantly. One Er Ya is clearly not enough; it can only lure another beauty, Sister Lian, to serve as a Corpse Ghost! This way, it can attract more Youngsters. Once it has killed a hundred people, it will become a Baqi Ghost! At that point, the entire village will be in peril!"
Gao Lao, who is involved in the Demon trade himself, turned pale upon hearing Lu Jianguo's words and trembled all over. "Masters, is there any way to save us?"
"There is a way, but I don't know about Baisha Village..."
Gao Lao spat on the ground. "In Baisha Village, my word is law; just tell me what to do!" Seeing Gao Lao's determination, Lu Jianguo lowered his voice and explained the plan. At first, Gao Lao looked worried, but soon his face brightened with hope as he nodded and left while muttering, "Definitely, definitely!"
I was stunned and perked up my ears to listen but could only catch snippets like "Youngster" and "Spirit Offering." I thought to myself, "What kind of play is Uncle Lu putting on? Even I have to be kept in the dark!"
That day, Lu Jianguo and I returned to Gao Lao's house. We spent our time either wandering aimlessly or eating and drinking from May 13th to May 15th in such leisure. During this period, Lu Jianguo disappeared for a while but returned quickly; I didn't think much of it. Gao Lao came home late every night.
Soon it was May 15th; dawn broke in the east. Lu Jianguo still hadn't made any moves, and I was starting to get impatient. I was also worried that Big Mouth Lee might be offered as a Spirit Offering, so I quietly approached the wooden house several times. Outside the wooden house were three or four men keeping watch, leaving me no chance to get close. Finally, as dusk fell and it became dimmer outside, I took advantage of the shift change among the men to sneak into the wooden house. Inside was pitch black and filled with people. Just as I got close to the entrance, someone kicked me inside; I stumbled into a crowd and was left bewildered.
I don't know how long it had been when we thirty or so Youngsters were bound hand and foot like criminals and escorted by eight knife-wielding men from the wooden house to the Temple. The Temple was brightly lit, overshadowing even the moonlight. We were led onto a platform by the well inside the temple; it was crowded with people. I was pushed into the throng where Gao Lao and Uncle Lu were whispering inside the temple. Just as I was about to speak up, a heavy pole struck my head hard, followed by a cloth being stuffed into my mouth.
With no other choice, I took advantage of the light to observe the Temple closely. It was a tall wooden structure with flying eaves and brackets that exuded grandeur. The six massive beams supporting the roof were impressive; carvings adorned the tops of these beams while their bases were embedded in stone pedestals shaped like wide-mouthed frogs. In the center of the hall sat three statues of deities: frogs with yellow backs, green backs, and black backs—all with large bellies and wide mouths that seemed to be smiling. Without a doubt, these were representations of the Big Belly God.
The Big Belly God refers to the Moon God in local dialects. This is similar to how Han People compare gold frogs to the moon. Legend has it that over three hundred years ago, a chieftain from the Savage Tribe with a big belly led his people to successfully repel Li Zicheng's invading army. After his death, he was worshipped as a deity by his tribe. During the Qing Dynasty's campaign against lewd temples and earth god shrines, naturally, the Big Belly Deity Temple could not escape destruction. By Jiaqing's reign in the Qing Dynasty when national strength declined, local earth god temples began reconstruction. Due to its long history, outsiders mistakenly identified Big Belly God as the legendary golden frog deity; thus new temples were built for him. According to local customs regarding landforms and water bodies' five elemental attributes, three frog deities—yellow, green, and black—were worshipped respectively. Every fifteenth night of each month during full moons sacrifices were traditionally made.
Baisha Village is one of the few villages that worships the Big Belly God, offering Three Livestock and Six Domestic Animals on the fifteenth of each month. If someone offends the Mountain Deity or the Cave God, Gao Lao will consult the Big Belly God to determine whether a sacrifice is necessary. If the Big Belly God permits it, Gao Lao will make arrangements for a "Spirit Offering" on either this month's fifteenth or next month's fifteenth, and the person who has offended the deities must submit to their fate.
The process of conducting a "Spirit Offering" is quite simple. First, the sacrificial victim is driven to the platform at the Big Belly Deity Temple and untied. Then, Gao Lao performs a ritual play called "Belly King Investigates the Shadows" on stage. As Gao Lao chants incantations, the Shaman pours a cup of enchanted water down the throat of the sacrificial victim, putting them into a dazed state. The villagers then bow together, kneeling three times and knocking their heads nine times before striking the bronze drum three times each. Afterward, everyone leans back and exits the temple. The notion of burning with fire is merely an external rumor.
If the Big Belly God descends upon the Temple to take away the sacrificial victim, a notch will be marked on the platform. This notch is not made by a blade; it is smoother than any cut made by a knife, making it easily recognizable. Bound as I was, I could do nothing but observe my surroundings closely. I counted approximately eighty-four or eighty-five notches around the platform. Before long, a sound like a conch echoed from the stage, pulling me back to reality.
Listening to the mournful conch sound, I leaned toward the Fat Buddha Statue. Gao Lao wore an Evil Spirit mask and was draped in tiger skin clothing, holding a fan in his left hand and a bronze bell in his right, shaking them rhythmically. Gao Lao sang in a garbled language from the Savage Tribe and mimicked riding a horse while cracking a whip. The bronze drum sounded four times, prompting the villagers below to kneel quickly and chant monosyllabic words like "good." This chanting and singing continued for about half an hour until finally, each bronze drum rang out four times. The Shaman brought over twenty cups of water to the stage, and Gao Lao produced a Yellow Talisman, burned it, pinched some ash, and flicked it into one of the cups. That was what they called enchanted water.
I began to understand that this so-called enchanted water was nothing more than a Mind-Controlling Drug. The series of incantations and dances were merely performance art; even burning the Yellow Talisman was just a trick. Although my Daoist practice was shallow, I had been in this realm for over half a month and understood its basic principles. They simply mixed Mind-Controlling Drug into water for people to drink until they fell unconscious!
Several villagers came forward to forcibly pry open our mouths and poured a cup into each of us. My vision darkened, and my consciousness began to fade. The nearby bronze drum sounded many times, but it felt as if those sounds were drifting down from beyond the clouds. I lost track of time before I finally succumbed to unconsciousness.
I don't know how long it was before I woke up to a cold breeze, feeling an eerie silence around me. With the bright moonlight as my guide, I discovered that there wasn't a single shadow around the platform. It suddenly struck me that since approaching the wooden house, I hadn't seen Big Mouth Lee at all. The wooden house had been crowded with people, and in my haste to reach the Big Belly Deity Temple, I had overlooked this key figure. Cursing inwardly, I thought, "Damn it! How did I become a living sacrifice?"
The Big Belly King Temple was eerily quiet; thinking about Lu Jianguo's Jealous Woman Ghost filled me with complex emotions. "Crap! Did Lu Jianguo sell me out?" At this thought, chills ran down my spine. But then I reconsidered: "He can't be that kind of person!" Various bizarre thoughts swirled in my mind as I hurriedly climbed down from the altar and dashed toward the main door. "Crap! The door is locked from outside!" This was just great! The hall remained unnaturally silent.
Cackling laughter echoed from where the Big Belly God resided; a terrifying scene unfolded!
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