Chapter 61.1 Deserted Village 03
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Chief Witch Yi said, “Our initial plan was to prepare well before entering the deserted village to investigate the situation. However, we discovered a group of young adventurers sneaking into the deserted village. They managed to send a distress signal, and our team outside received it, prompting us to come in prematurely. Due to the lack of prior exploration, one celestial master got injured in the attempt to rescue them.”
Chen Yang turned to see the injured celestial master. There was a torn and festering wound on his shoulder. Despite some basic treatment with hemostatic herbs, the decay of the wound couldn’t be halted. The so-called ‘Ten Paths and Nine Doctors’ held true, particularly for practitioners of the Ghost Dao who could handle most injuries.
Chief Witch Yi, however, was helpless in dealing with this wound and could only describe it as tricky. She explained, “I used hemostatic herbs earlier, but this morning, I suddenly found his flesh starting to necrotize. What’s worse, he doesn’t feel any pain.” As he spoke, Chief Witch Yi tore open a piece of skin from the celestial master’s wound, and the injured celestial master showed no change in expression. “Stiff necrosis, I suspect it’s poisoned.”
Chen Yang: “Didn’t you bring cinnabar yellow talismans?”
Chief Witch Yi, typically composed, revealed a subtle emotional ripple as she recounted, “They were forcibly removed during the rescue mission.” Expressing disdain for the group of young adventurers who not only stirred up trouble but also proved to be a hindrance, she added, “I could only find some detoxifying herbs, but we need glutinous rice or cinnabar yellow talismans.”
Du Shuo: “Can’t you all leave?”
“We couldn’t. Including them,” Chief Witch Yi lifted her long sleeves, revealing a spiral pattern on her arm—a ghastly white thread winding through the blood vessels in the shape of a seashell. She explained, “When we first entered the deserted village, we didn’t encounter monsters initially. Instead, we came across a few individuals who had disembarked from a bus. They got separated from the others and ended up at the ancestral hall. That night, we stayed in the hall and also rescued four young people.”
Chief Witch Yi tilted her head, gesturing with her chin towards the three disoriented youths opposite. “These are three of them. The fourth one died and was placed in the coffin in the ancestral hall—the one you saw. While we stayed overnight, they all ate instant noodles they brought with them. We advised them not to consume anything from the deserted village, but when we went out to search for others, these young people caught fish from the well in the hall and made soup. They made everyone in the vicinity drink it and even secretly poured the fish soup into our hot water flasks.”
Exhausted at the time, they failed to notice immediately and mixed the fish soup into the instant noodles. The instant noodles, when steeped in hot water, produced a strong flavor, masking the taste of the fish soup. It was only after consumption that they realized, but by then, it was too late. Everyone who drank the fish soup had white, thread-like seashell patterns appearing on their arms, and no matter how they tried, they couldn’t leave the deserted village.
That night, a young person fell victim to an attack by the monsters in the deserted village. By the time they reached the scene, half of his head, one arm, half of his pelvis, and one leg were already gnawed off. The first celestial master to arrive at the scene also got bitten on the shoulder and has yet to heal.
Chen Yang examined the injured celestial master’s complexion, slightly pale with a darkened forehead, but showing no signs of turning into a zombie. Both Chief Witch Yi and the injured celestial master assured him, “It’s not zombie poison. Celestial Master Zhong, apart from the painless necrosis of the wound, didn’t exhibit any other symptoms of zombie poison. Moreover, when the three of us celestial masters arrived, we saw the creature that attacked Celestial Master Zhong—lean, agile, definitely not a zombie.”
Liu Quanning, stepping forward, said, “Indeed, it’s not a zombie. Except for the furry and flying zombies, which move swiftly, the rest of the zombies need to leap. Moreover, if it were furry zombies or flying zombies, they would be sucking blood rather than eating flesh.”
Chen Yang, puzzled, asked, “That’s strange then. Wound necrosis without pain, yet no signs of turning into a zombie. Clearly, it’s poisoned. Can you see it?” He looked at Du Shuo.
Du Shuo: “Did you get a clear look at the creature that attacked you?”
“There was no light at the time. The moonlight was completely obscured by branches and leaves, so I couldn’t see clearly,” Celestial Master Zhong struggled to recall, “All I knew was that its limbs were thin like withered branches, its hair is sparse, and the abdomen is swollen. The facial features were indistinct. Initially, I thought it was a starving ghost, but starving ghosts possess terrifying karmic forces, with throats as tiny as needlepoints. Any ingested food turns into flaming polluted water. Without the Daoist ritual of feeding through a flaming mouth iron pot, they cannot eat. So, it’s impossible for them to devour human flesh.”
Du Shuo: “There are thirty-six types of starving ghosts, such as those that feed on water, those with needle-like mouths, and others that may roam the mortal realm, attaching themselves to grass and trees. Starving ghosts that feed on children, those that consume the breath of human life, those that devour blood and flesh, and those that starve themselves to death are all imprisoned in hell.”
Chief Witch Yi: “Director Du means these types of starving ghosts escaped from hell and are hiding in the deserted village?”
Du Shuo: “That’s possible.”
Chen Yang recalled Du Shuo’s earlier mention that Wu Lingjiu had escaped from hell, planting seeds of trouble that erupted after twenty years. Could it be that these life-taking starving ghosts escaped from hell? No wonder Chief Witch Yi, Celestial Master Zhong, and the others didn’t consider life-taking starving ghosts. Chen Yang himself hadn’t thought of it either.
There were approximately thirty-six types of starving ghosts, transformed due to heavy karmic forces in their past lives. In the Ghost Realm they hold the lowest status. Starving ghosts could not eat, enduring perpetual hunger and cold. They possessed grotesque and terrifying appearances, with throats the size of a narrow aperture. Swallowing any food caused intense pain, as any delicacies would turn into burning charcoal in their mouths. Likewise, clean water would transform into foul-smelling pus and blood. They endured this torment year after year as a karmic retribution.
These starving ghosts either wander in the underworld or drift among grass and trees in the mortal realm. However, certain types, like those that devour blood and flesh, and those that starve themselves to death, remain imprisoned in hell, prohibited from appearing in the mortal realm.
These types of starving ghosts were both terrifying and troublesome, and their numbers were countless. At this moment, celestial masters like Chief Witch Yi felt the situation becoming challenging. Liu Quanning, having heard about Wu Lingjiu before entering the deserted village, asked, “Are the starving ghosts in the deserted village related to Wu Lingjiu?”
Chen Yang glanced at Du Shuo, who nodded. Chen Yang then stated, “Indeed, they are connected. When Wu Lingjiu escaped from hell, he released the life-taking starving ghosts imprisoned in hell.”
Du Shuo: “Wu Lingjiu was imprisoned with the life-taking starving ghosts, which consume all living beings, including spirits. So, Wu Lingjiu, locked together with the life-taking starving ghosts, were torn and bitten for seven hundred years. After feeding those starving ghosts, he brought them out of hell into the mortal realm, sealing them in the deserted village. Starving ghosts crave human flesh and blood. When they see people, they can’t resist devouring them.”
Starving ghosts had a penchant for human flesh and breath, so along the way, Chen Yang and the two others encountered cat corpses drained of breath, with only a thin layer of skin remaining, as well as the body in the ancestral hall half-eaten.
Chen Yang retrieved cinnabar, talismans, and other items from his backpack, grinding the cinnabar and drawing protective symbols on the talismans. Although these symbols couldn’t entirely expel the corpse poison left by the starving ghosts on Celestial Master Zhong’s wound, they could at least suppress it.
He explained, “The corpse poison from the starving ghosts assimilates people into starving ghosts. The seashell patterns on your arms mark you, trapping you in the deserted village. You might already be considered a meal for the starving ghosts—” Before he could finish his sentence, one of the nine ordinary individuals, a girl, broke down in tears.
The girl cried, “I don’t want to die!”
Her tears cast a shadow over the faces of the others, painting expressions colored with unease and anxiety. It was clear that they too acknowledged the formidable challenge at hand, especially since even the celestial masters found it difficult. With their lives hanging in the balance, there was naturally no room for cheerfulness. A woman holding a baby rushed to Chen Yang, pleading for him to save her child, “He didn’t drink the fish soup, he’s fine. Can you please take him out?”
Chen Yang uncovered the baby’s clothes, revealing the white thread-like seashell pattern. The woman, astonished, exclaimed, “How is this possible?!”
“Breast milk,” Chen Yang said as he lowered the clothes. The woman broke down in tears. Chen Yang turned to Du Shuo and whispered, “What kind of fish is in the well? How come even a baby who drank breast milk has seashell patterns on his arm?”
“Not certain yet,” Du Shuo replied. “Perhaps we can go back and investigate.”
Chen Yang pondered, “Let’s do it tomorrow.” Then, he addressed Chief Witch Yi and the others, “The corpse poison on Celestial Master Zhong’s shoulder needs to be removed. For now, we can only suppress it with talismans. So, we still need to find a way to leave the deserted village as soon as possible. How much do you know about the deserted village?”
Liu Quanning: “I’m from Southern Guangdong, so I’m quite familiar with the deserted village. Before people started disappearing, it was just an abandoned village, surrounded by overgrown vegetation, exuding a palpable Yin energy. There were indeed wandering spirits and wild ghosts occupying the uninhabited rooms. People and spirits coexisted peacefully until paranormal events occurred. After investigation, it was only rated as a three-star danger level. It wasn’t until a young celestial master got injured that a reevaluation suggested a danger level of possibly four stars or higher.”
Regarding the incorrect rating of the deserted village, the headquarters of the Daoist Association specifically criticized and investigated the responsibilities of the Guangdong Daoist Association. However, the initial misjudgment of the deserted village’s danger level was not the fault of the Guangdong Daoist Association’s celestial masters. Initially, the danger level of the deserted village was indeed only rated at three stars. However, similar to leveling-up, the danger level gradually escalated, leading to their current predicament of being trapped in this place.
Liu Quanning: “The issues in the deserted village started in April of last year when a few people stayed overnight for a tour. One girl went missing, and another witnessed her disappearance, muttering about ‘monsters’. The Daoist Association didn’t pay attention initially. It was only after the police got involved that they came for an inspection. The inspection rated it as three stars, and a celestial master took the job, as you know. Subsequent celestial masters who came for inspection consistently affirmed it as a three-star danger until this year when they discovered the danger level had risen to four stars.”
Chen Yang was aware of the subsequent events. They were all trapped in the deserted village, and one celestial master had contracted the corpse poison.
Liu Quanning: “Villagers from the deserted village gradually moved out due to inconvenient transportation. Before moving out, there were no supernatural events. Surprisingly, after the villagers left, the deserted village turned into a ‘**’ The ‘**’ and the ‘Green Kingdom’ attracted many people for tourism and exploration, including—” he gestured towards the woman with the baby and five others. “Encountering thick fog along the way, the bus unknowingly entered the deserted village. The bus engine died, and they found themselves attacked by monsters, forcing them to flee for their lives.”
Chief Witch Yi: “I deduce that during this period, it was likely the growth phase of the monsters, urgently requiring flesh and blood. Additionally, someone might have intentionally raised this group of monsters.”
Chen Yang asked in surprise, “What do you mean?”
“Have you seen the surroundings outside the deserted village? The entire Egui Mountains forms a large wok shape, and the deserted village is in the center. It’s inconvenient to enter or leave. There used to be a road connecting the deserted village to the outside world, but now it’s covered with wild grass. In the south, thick fog rarely appears, and even if it does, it wouldn’t coincide so precisely to guide the bus over a road obscured by wild grass, leading them into the deserted village,” Chief Witch Yi speculated confidently, “So, someone used occult techniques to deceive everyone on the bus, guiding them into the deserted village as food for the monsters.”
Like an insect spinning a large web, trapping prey and delivering it to the growing monsters’ mouths.
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