Chapter 63.1 Deserted Village 05
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Chen Yang raised his head. “Wu Lingjiu?”
The old professor looked at Chen Yang and Du Shuo. “Do you know a young man named Meng Xi? Is his real name Wu Lingjiu?”
Chen Yang: “Yes. Did you figure it out?”
“I didn’t think anything was strange before, but now that I’m almost dead in this eerie deserted village, I guess I’ve been fooled.” The old professor waved his hand, refusing to let Zhao Yao and Zhao Gang help him up. “I can run faster than you guys. If I could only see the road clearly and didn’t bump into a tree, I wouldn’t need you to carry me.”
Chen Yang picked up the white bone on the ground and throw them in the ghost cocoon. “Why did he deceive you?”
The old professor, seeing the ghost cocoon, took a step forward, paused, and hesitantly asked, “It won’t suddenly jump out and bite me from the ghost cocoon, will it?”
“No. Just a set of white bones. However, the ghost cocoon has a hole, where the moonlight can enter. In another three to five years, when it absorbs enough moonlight essence, it will be able to come out and harm people. Once it gets blood, it will become a mischievous spirit. That’s when it will harm people,” Chen Yang explained, subconsciously glancing at Du Shuo beside him.
Du Shuo, initially standing with hands behind his back, met Chen Yang’s gaze and casually placed his hand on his shoulder. Standing intimately together, Chen Yang naturally lifted his hand to grasp the large hand resting on his shoulder. The couple-like atmosphere between them effortlessly radiated, not at all awkward or out of place.
The old professor and Zhao Yao glanced at the two nonchalantly. However, Zhao Gang’s surprise was evident on his face. Seeing his reaction, Zhao Yao nudged him, “What’s with you? You can usually keep up with my jokes, but now you’re acting all surprised?”
Speechless, Zhao Gang managed to utter after a long pause, “That’s because I haven’t tried it yet, okay?”
“Oh, now you want to try?” Zhao Yao laughed slyly and even nudged Zhao Gang with her shoulder. “But you can only be the bottom one at most. You can’t dominate others.”
Despite being tall and slender, Zhao Gang’s face was rather feminine. He responded indignantly, “I’m stronger than you, Zhao Yao. I’m telling you, don’t talk nonsense. I only like girls.”
Rolling her eyes at him, Zhao Yao retorted, “Who started this joke first?” Dismissing Zhao Gang with a couple of scoffs, she walked over to the old professor and Chen Yang, asking, “Celestial Master Chen, when should we go back to find your companions? Will the corpse poison in my wound suddenly act up?”
Chen Yang replied, “Not so soon.” Then he looked at the old professor, who was attempting to touch the ghost cocoon. The professor, catching Chen Yang’s gaze, explained with a sheepish smile, “I’m just doing normal research and observation to see what comes out of this ghost cocoon. I think Meng Xi, or as you call him, Wu Lingjiu, deceived me because I specialize in studying folk culture, particularly funeral rituals.”
Chen Yang asked, “So you have some understanding of the two funeral rituals in the deserted village?” Seeing the old professor’s keen interest in the ghost cocoon, he continued, “These remains should have been buried for over three years. As long as yoy avoid offending it, you can observe and document without issue.”
Upon hearing this, the old professor hastily called his two students to observe and take notes. While observing and documenting without damaging the ghost cocoon, he responded to Chen Yang, “Our country has numerous funeral rituals, and different ethnic groups have distinct practices. Many of these rituals, though appearing eerie and terrifying, are closely tied to their religious beliefs. The intention is to express good wishes for the departed, but most people harbor fear of corpses and death. Hence, some peculiar funeral rituals are not widely accepted, especially water burials and tree burials. By the way, are you, are you celestial masters?”
Chen Yang: “Yes.”
The old professor glanced at both of them and continued documenting, “If you are celestial masters, you should have some understanding of funeral rituals.”
“Indeed, some understanding, but not in-depth knowledge.” Funeral rituals represent the local religious beliefs, traditions, and cultural development, and one wouldn’t know them without deliberate study. Chen Yang only had a surface-level understanding of some funeral rituals. Anything deeper was unknown to him.
Old Professor: “No need to delve too much. This matter, after all, involves the deceased, and some superstitious things must be believed with caution. If there’s no respect, there’s no need to delve into this field. You both know about water burials and tree burials. Some believe that fish are incarnations of river gods, and the river god will convey the departed soul for reincarnation. Others think trees serve as vessels for the departed spirits, hence burying the deceased in the tree. However, there’s little knowledge about what follows.”
After recording the information he sought, the old professor instructed the two students to observe more carefully. Then, he stepped back, pointing to a dark corner in the woods where numerous concealed branches harbored countless ghost cocoons. He explained, “Trees serve as the abode for departed spirit, providing them with a place to return when they miss their loved ones. However, spirits eventually need to reincarnate, and their souls must depart. While trees serve as residences for spirits, they also imprison them, preventing their escape. To facilitate reincarnation, a secondary burial is required, a practice that has existed in many places since ancient times. While many believe that the secondary burial practice of exhuming bones originated in Minnan and among Hakka people, it is actually prevalent in many parts of Guangdong and Guangxi. When you entered the deserted village, did you notice the half-man-tall jars placed at the gateways of those turrets? They contain the remains from second burials.”
Perhaps due to his habit of instructing students with lengthy discourses, the professor, as was his custom, elaborated on the customs of second burials before getting to the point, “Water burials and tree burials would never coexist in the same village, absolutely not. These are two distinct theological beliefs that cannot coexist in the same enclosed space. Water burials involve casting body parts into the river for the fish. Essentially, in primitive religious beliefs, it is a sacrifice to the river god, seeking blessings for local weather and preventing severe drought.
“This is precisely why I became intrigued by the deserted village, wondering what could make such an isolated community tolerate two different funeral rituals. Later, upon researching, I discovered that the deserted village originally practiced tree burials, and later, water burials emerged. However, the Egui Mountais were once plagued by prolonged droughts, with corpses strewn across the area. Therefore, I suspect that the villagers in the deserted village utilized water burials to appease the river god, seeking prosperity and favorable weather for the deserted village.”
Chen Yang’s brow furrowed. “There’s an ancestor hall in the deserted village, with over a hundred nameless memorial tablets. In the center of the courtyard, there’s a well. We found someone conducting a water burial by the well last night. If, as you mentioned, it’s to worship the river god, and the deserted village is now uninhabited, why would someone still perform water burials?”
“That’s precisely why I personally came to investigate the deserted village… No, I don’t know about the ancestral hall you mentioned or the water burial last night. What I mean is, perhaps what I’ve researched can answer your questions. The villagers gradually moved away from the deserted village, but before that, it was a prosperous and affluent place, falling into decline only because of the inconvenience of transportation. At that time, the government was planning to invest in road construction to connect the deserted village and K City. However, the villagers insisted on moving away. After their departure, they began dying one after another. The causes of death were all accidental, under unusual circumstances.
“It doesn’t end there. The children who didn’t die grew up, forgot about the deserted village, got married, and had children. After giving birth, they all met with sudden misfortune and died unexpectedly, leaving behind their children to continue the cycle.” The old professor asked them, “What does this sound like? A curse, retaliation, an endless entanglement haunting the villagers of the deserted village for generations.”
Du Shuo leaned in and whispered to Chen Yang, “Ghost resentment.”
Chen Yang asked, “Hmm?” The old professor also wore an expression of confusion.
Du Shuo: “In the deserted village, the water burial ritual is a homage to the river god, where the bodies are chopped and thrown into the well for the fish to consume. They construct an ancestor hall, placing nameless memorial tablets inside to trap the spirits, ensuring good weather and prosperity in the deserted village. They are forced to leave their ancestral homes without being able to reincarnate, and we still don’t know whether those who were buried in water died natural deaths or died in ‘unnatural’ accidents. Day after day, their souls are trapped in the ancestral hall, accumulating resentment. Bereft of offerings, they attach themselves to the fish that consumed the body parts, transforming into ghost resentments.”
Ghost resentments embodied curses, murder, and hatred. By forsaking the opportunity for reincarnation, they turned themselves into a curse, perpetuating revenge against their enemies through generations. It was eerie and extremely sinister.
Old Professor: “I remember now. The villagers in the deserted village had a tradition. During their children’s fifteenth-year adulthood ceremony, they’d make them drink fish soup and eat fish meat, symbolizing a wish for safety, health, and an absence of misfortunes. After obtaining this information, I specifically sought out a few households from the deserted village to inquire. However, when I mentioned the deserted village, they became evasive.”
Chen Yang looked up at Du Shuo, attempting to glean clues. Du Shuo’s hand on Chen Yang’s shoulder suddenly lifted, gently tapping his cheek as a hint. “Everything happens for a reason. There is a cause for every effect. The cycle of karma is swift and sure.”
Chen Yang: “You’re getting more and more cryptic.” Formerly prone to half-revealing information, now even his spoken words were hard to decipher.
Du Shuo chuckled, ruffling Chen Yang’s hair. “Yangyang is clever and understands me well. You can figure it out.” With that, he looked at Zhao Yao and Zhao Gang. Zhao Yao was diligently taking notes, while Zhao Gang, accidentally witnessing their affectionate exchange, wore an awkward and peculiar expression.
Du Shuo’s voice carried a playful tone, but his eyes exuded cold indifference, piercing through Zhao Gang. Zhao Gang’s heart skipped a beat. He nervously forced a stiff smile and turned to huddle with Zhao Yao. Zhao Yao glanced at him and whispered, “Did he scare you?”
Zhao Gang glanced at Zhao Yao’s face, momentarily stunned before responding, “Just momentarily caught off guard. I’m not afraid of a furious professor, why would I fear someone who’s gay?”
Zhao Yao: “Hey!”
Zhao Gang: “Alright, alright, my bad. I’m just feeling a bit uneasy. Ignore me for now. Talk to me when I’ve adjusted.”
Zhao Yao shook her head and didn’t bother to talk to the restless Zhao Gang anymore. She couldn’t help but scoff in her heart. She never expected that Zhao Gang, who was usually able to talk about any topic and was particularly dirty-minded, turned out to have such poor mental and emotional capacity.
Du Shuo withdrew his gaze and softly inquired of the old professor, “Do you know why Wu Lingjiu lured you to here?”
“I have no idea. With my old arms and legs, I only know a bit about funeral rituals. What else could I be useful for?” The old professor circled the gnarled tree twice, and noticing that Zhao Gang had only written less than a page in his notebook, he slapped him on the head and scolded him, “Do you think you can just write down a few measurements and be done with it?” Only after Zhao Gang apologized repeatedly did the old professor let him off.
The old professor said, “I genuinely don’t know why the young man you mentioned would lie to me. I specialize in researching the folk culture of China and have made some achievements in my field. My published articles are quite reputable. Perhaps he wanted me to uncover the truth about the deserted village and then reveal it? If that’s the case, then he might be an angsty anti-hero.”
Despite being over fifty, the old professor held progressive views. He continued, “If he had this plan, I regret to say that he miscalculated. I’m not an old-fashioned man who refuses to adapt. There are things that can be published, and there are things that should not be published due to their potential consequences. Therefore, I can’t rashly publish anything.”
Chen Yang smiled, accompanying the old professor and his two students. After they completed their examination and documentation, he planned to lead them back to the deserted village. While the old professor was investigating the ghost cocoon, Chen Yang whispered, “Could Wu Lingjiu truly intend for the professor to uncover the truth about the deserted village and then publish it?”
What could be the purpose of the publication?
“The professor is a respected figure in his field. If published, his findings could create a stir and attract widespread attention. Would this lead to the exposure of the events in the deserted village, including the starving ghosts, ghost larvae, and ghost resentments?
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