At eight in the evening, a faint mist shrouded Pingshan Village. Unlike the West Village, the East Village was completely silent. Aside from the rustling of crawling insects and the footsteps of the wax corpses walking beneath them, there was no sound at all.
After eliminating the Divine Mother of the Tongue, the Curse had receded considerably.
Though wax corpses still wandered the village, their threat level had dropped significantly. Bai Yu also chose to release her control over Zhao Mingyue’s body, letting Mingyue grow accustomed to her newly “developed” physique on her own.
There was another reason as well. Bai Yu could not be entirely certain that Mingyue’s body was completely free of problems. She had only possessed it, which allowed her to control its movements but not perceive its internal changes. For example, if Zhao Mingyue’s body were freezing to death at that very moment, Bai Yu would not feel the cold at all.
The instant Zhao Mingyue regained control of her body, her legs nearly buckled, and she almost collapsed on the spot.
During the time Bai Yu had controlled her body while her consciousness remained awake, it had been like sleep paralysis—her mind could think, but her body would not obey.
And now, the only thing she felt was pain. Unbearable pain.
Every muscle in her body was sore and aching. Her legs felt as heavy as if they were filled with lead, and every step was a struggle. Yet, strangely, the pain remained within the limits of what she could endure, and it was remarkably evenly distributed. If asked to point out exactly where it hurt, she could not possibly say—because every inch of her body was in agony!
Just as Zhao Mingyue’s legs gave out and she was about to fall, Bai Yu materialized and reached out from the front to steady her, intending to help her adjust.
The moment Bai Yu appeared, Zhao Mingyue looked at her as though she were a lifeline. Drawing on some unknown reserve of strength, she threw her arms around Bai Yu, pressing her entire body against her and refusing to let go.
“Bai Yu, my Sister Yu, I don’t think I’ll ever have to worry about losing weight again. Whenever I want to slim down, you just possess me. The results are incredible. A few more sessions and there’s no way I won’t shed the pounds.”
The mask dissolved into blood threads and vanished, revealing Zhao Mingyue’s pitiful little expression.
“But I have to thank you, Sister Yu. Without you, I might have gone my whole life without knowing my body could pull off such incredibly difficult moves.”
“I never knew I could send a hundred-jin corpse flying three or four meters with a single kick.”
Holding the aggrieved Zhao Mingyue, Bai Yu coughed lightly at these words. “Ahem. The fact that you only feel muscle soreness right now, rather than having your legs completely ruined, proves that your body’s upper limits are still far from being reached.”
“Ah, so if I were a bit weaker, they really would have been ruined?”
“No. The human body is quite wondrous, and I… know my limits.”
Zhao Mingyue held onto Bai Yu for a good while before she managed, with great difficulty, to stand up straight. Sore as she was, once she adjusted, she could still walk.
Perhaps it was just her imagination, but she felt an indescribable lightness in her body. If the soreness ever faded, her physical fitness would probably surpass that of most people.
Could this be considered a blessing in disguise?
Or rather, had her Ren and Du meridians been unblocked?
She had watched Bai Yu’s entire battle, and all the while, she had fantasized that one day, she too could be that formidable. At the very least, she would not be a burden. Even if she could not reach that level, strengthening her body would still be worthwhile.
She did not know how to fight, but if she just let Bai Yu possess her, that would solve the problem, right?
“Little Sister Yu, why do you think Lu Liangting became the groom? There should have been plenty of other candidates,” Zhao Mingyue asked as they walked toward the Family Banquet, reflecting on what had just happened.
“His body.”
“His body?”
“The Divine Mother of the Tongue would send down its Will, commanding the Cultists to act. It wanted Lu Liangting’s body.”
“And what about the Ghost Bride?”
“She came from the Back Village. I’m not certain what she is, but she is definitely nothing good.”
Bai Yu sank back into Zhao Mingyue’s shadow. The Leather Jacket on her person had not been dismissed; only the Mask on her face was gone.
“And what about me? Why did they want me to come back?”
“Also your body. The difference is, the Divine Mother of the Tongue would discard all these tedious, cumbersome rituals. Everything would be simplified—either she possesses you later, or they sacrifice you directly.”
Following the memories of her childhood, Zhao Mingyue walked along a small path at the edge of the village. Her Eldest Uncle’s family lived in a very remote spot, and this path was actually the shortest route.
She was somewhat afraid to walk through the village proper, and she was also afraid to walk this path.
She could only say that the shadows this village had cast over her were far, far too deep.
In the silence, Zhao Mingyue felt a chill. She wrapped the Blood Thread Clothes tighter around herself, tucked in her neck, and fixed her gaze vigilantly on her surroundings, subconsciously searching for something with her eyes.
Nothing here had changed, except that much of the color had faded away. Just like the Small Pond up ahead.
The moonlight was dim, and the Small Pond appeared dark and murky.
There had once been a fence around it, but now the fence was gone. The area was bare, and even the trees beside it had withered and died.
Zhao Mingyue’s gaze settled on the Small Pond. She slowed her pace, though her heart was screaming an entirely different desire—she wanted nothing more than to flee this place as quickly as possible.
The Small Pond and everything around it stirred up memories Zhao Mingyue had buried deep within her heart.
“Xiao Yue.”
Just as she came back to her senses and prepared to quicken her pace and escape, Zhao Mingyue suddenly heard a voice. It was very soft, somewhat ethereal, and most importantly, it was a voice she knew all too well.
She involuntarily slowed her steps again and turned her head to look at the Small Pond beside her.
The voice appeared once and then vanished, as though it had been nothing more than Zhao Mingyue’s imagination. But just as she lifted her foot to leave, the voice came again.
“Xiao Yue! Xiao Yue!”
The voice was much clearer now and terribly urgent. Zhao Mingyue’s eyes widened, her entire body frozen in place. She was certain the voice was coming from within the Small Pond. And this voice—wasn’t it that of her good friend who had drowned right here?
The thought had barely formed when the dark, still surface of the Small Pond began to bubble outward with a gurgling sound. Gradually, something round floated up. It was so dark that even Zhao Mingyue could not make out what it was. It vaguely resembled a leather ball.
“Xiao Yue, don’t go. Save me. Please, save me. Aren’t I your good friend?” The child’s voice took on a sobbing tone, which quickly turned resentful. “Didn’t you say… you would play with me forever?!”
“Why did you abandon me!”
As these words were spoken, the “leather ball” in the water slowly turned around. When Zhao Mingyue saw it clearly, her pupils contracted, and she stumbled backward two steps.
That was no leather ball. It was a human head. She had just seen a face—swollen, rotting.
“Aren’t you afraid of me?!” The pond’s surface continued to gurgle with bubbles, and the head slowly rotated within it. If one looked carefully, they would notice that the bubbles were actually being blown from the head’s pursed lips.
“Let’s go. You have a very good friend.”
Bai Yu patted Zhao Mingyue’s shoulder and offered quiet reassurance.
This Ghost had not appeared to harm Zhao Mingyue at all. It was simply trying to scare her, to make her leave—just like the Female Ghost by the bridge when they had first arrived.
If it had truly wanted to harm Zhao Mingyue, Bai Yu would have struck with her blade long ago.
As it turned out, within this small village being slowly devoured by the Curse, there was still a trace of warmth—even if that warmth appeared rather terrifying.
Zhao Mingyue glanced at Bai Yu. She collected herself, understanding what Bai Yu meant. Pressing her lips together, she spoke softly. “Thank you, Xiao Ru. I will always remember you. You will always be my friend. But I have to go back today. Don’t worry about me. I’ll be fine.”
The head stopped spinning, clearly growing anxious. “Don’t go. You absolutely must not…”
But before she could finish her sentence, something beneath the water suddenly yanked her down. She vanished completely, her voice gone, and the water’s surface returned to stillness.
“Xiao Ru!”
“Don’t. There’s something down there—more than one thing.” Bai Yu pressed a hand against Zhao Mingyue’s shoulder.
Zhao Mingyue stood silent for a long moment, then turned and walked away.
What else could she do? Ask Bai Yu to dive in and rescue a Ghost?
In truth, what she wanted more was for Bai Yu to help her find release instead.
“That child was called Xiao Ru. She was the first friend I made after coming to this village. We were very close. Then, in July of that year, someone found her drowned here.”
“At the time, her parents wept inconsolably. They pointed at me and said I was the one who had killed Xiao Ru.”
“I didn’t know what to do, so I just cried and apologized to them over and over.”
Standing at a distance in front of a three-story building, Zhao Mingyue lifted her head and gazed at the dim lamplight glowing from within. “It was right there, in my Eldest Uncle’s house. They also said they should just send me back to the Back Village. My father had to beg before they finally let it go.”
There were hardly any lights on in the entire village, save for the Courtyard House where the Village Chief lived and the Funeral in the West Village. Among ordinary houses, this three-story building was the only one Bai Yu had seen with its lights still on.
As she spoke, Zhao Mingyue began walking toward the house where her Eldest Uncle’s family lived.
Eight in the evening was already quite late, but considering it was the old woman’s grand birthday celebration, one would have expected it to be lively and bustling. Zhao Mingyue’s absence should not have mattered much.
Within the family, Zhao Mingyue’s status had always been the lowest. Still, they could not do without her entirely. After all, Zhao Mingyue was someone the Evil God had its eye on. Her Eldest Uncle could certainly profit by selling her out for some benefit.
In fact, Zhao Mingyue’s Eldest Uncle’s family had thought exactly that.
The reason they knew there was a scheme waiting for them and still insisted on returning was simple. Bai Yu wanted to use these people to uncover the secrets surrounding Zhao Mingyue.
She had learned much about the affairs of Pingshan Village and grasped the general situation. But Zhao Mingyue herself remained shrouded in Mist, and Bai Yu still had no way of confirming exactly which Evil God resided within her—or whether it was even one of these four Evil Gods at all.
The entity inside Zhao Mingyue was immensely powerful, far stronger than the Divine Mother of the Tongue.
The other Evil Gods were roughly on par with each other, so the one within Zhao Mingyue required further investigation.
“Do you need me to possess you?” Bai Yu asked.
“Not yet. There are some things I want to ask them face to face!” Zhao Mingyue had steeled her resolve. “Just read the situation. If things go wrong, possess me at any time.”
“As for the people in that room, use your judgment as well. If you think they must die, then kill them.”
“This time, I’m counting on you, Sister Bai!”
