Chapter 36 Part 1
Through the dim light, he could see the ancient, quiet Chengde Medical Clinic. The slightly ajar door revealed a young man leisurely reading at the consultation table inside, not having moved an inch.
Lu Guoliang, like a movie suddenly freezing, stopped in his tracks, the rain dripping from his hair and down his Tang suit.
Hadn’t he been running towards the mountains?
Why was he still at the entrance of Chengde Medical Clinic?
Under the lightning, Wu Heng’s side profile was handsome and gentle, the image of an ancient scholar, yet it sent chills down Lu Guoliang’s spine.
Lu Guoliang screamed, his voice swallowed by the thunder.
The older generation called this phenomenon “ghost hitting the wall.” In modern metaphysics, it was explained as an illusion created by strong Yin qi.
He was carrying the protective talisman given by the practitioner, yet he hadn’t sensed anything. How could this little shaman doctor generate such potent Yin qi?
‘Hee hee, Grandpa, didn’t you say you were taking me to find Dad?’
A ghostly child’s voice came from beside Lu Guoliang’s feet. He looked down stiffly and saw Liu Ziyang, whom he had buried in the pit, only his head remaining, resting on his shoe, rubbing against it with his soft right ear.
An ear.
Where did he get an ear?!
He had just cut off the child’s remaining right ear with his knife, not an ordinary knife, but one consecrated at the largest Buddhist temple in Southeast Asia, easily severing a ghost’s organs!
Terror gripped Lu Guoliang, the fear triggering a physical response, a sharp pain in his right ear, intensifying, becoming excruciating.
He reached a trembling hand towards his ear, feeling nothing, then looked down at his palm, covered in blood diluted by the rain.
An ear… Where was his right ear? He had clearly cut off Liu Ziyang’s!
And what cartilage had he just eaten?
“Ah—!”
Lu Guoliang screamed, losing control, on the verge of a breakdown.
“Fake, Wu Heng, you little beast, you tricked me!”
Fake, it must be fake.
Blood streamed down the old man’s wrinkled face as he cackled maniacally in the rain, “Hahaha, I’ve eaten more salt than you’ve eaten rice! This is an illusion, it’s all fake, Wu Heng, do you think I would believe you?”
Trying to scare him to death, wasn’t he?
The severed ear, the pain, it was all an illusion to scare him.
Lu Guoliang, enduring the excruciating pain in his right ear, sat cross-legged on the ground and started chanting.
Wu Heng put down the biology textbook, glanced outside, and chuckled.
This old man must have committed many sins in the past, and after escaping to Southeast Asia, fearing retribution, he started seeking refuge in Buddhism, now chanting Buddhist scriptures.
Wu Heng didn’t understand the words but knew he was summoning some Southeast Asian deity for protection.
Wu Heng sneered. Did this old man not know who was in charge here?
This was China! Even foreign deities had to kneel and call this land “father.”
Lu Guoliang felt a sense of peace wash over him, the pain in his right ear fading as he experienced a sense of enlightenment.
A gust of Yin wind blew through the rain, seemingly coming from all directions, surrounding him.
They had arrived.
All those years he spent gilding statues and making offerings in Southeast Asia weren’t in vain. Now that he was being targeted by a mere child like Wu Heng, they would surely come to his aid.
A smug smile appeared on Lu Guoliang’s face. He slowly opened his eyes, then instantly froze, his heart almost stopping.
Women.
Surrounding him weren’t the Southeast Asian deities he had summoned, but women, layers upon layers, blocking all escape routes.
They were all beautiful, but their faces were pale, their gazes fierce and fixed on him.
Wang Mei was among them. She had been enjoying square dancing with her friends earlier that evening and, after showering, fell asleep after just a couple of short videos.
She had a vivid dream, walking forward until she saw a faint light and stopped. She realized she was at Chengde Medical Clinic, and she even saw the young doctor inside.
Wang Mei vaguely remembered Wu Heng. He was very popular recently, even a middle-aged woman like her had seen his videos.
Wang Mei wondered, why was she dreaming of a doctor?
Was this a sign that she was ill and needed to go to the hospital after waking up?
As she was thinking this, she turned and saw the man she hated the most.
Although time had left its mark on Lu Guoliang, Wang Mei would never forget him.
When she was sixteen, she and her cousin worked at a KTV, serving drinks to guests in private rooms. It was their first day on the job when a middle-aged man pinned her down on the leather sofa in a private room.
She was terrified, begging the man to let her and her cousin go.
Their vulnerability only excited the man further. They were raped.
Her cousin couldn’t cope and suffered a mental breakdown, while she struggled through the trauma, even getting a boyfriend, who initially sympathized with her ordeal, but later cruelly called her a shameless whore.
But she was the victim!
She hated the man who raped her, and she resented her so-called boyfriend, so she never married.
Suddenly seeing the man who ruined her life, even in a dream, Wang Mei was filled with rage. She lunged forward and punched Lu Guoliang in the face with all her might.
Whether it was due to their collective resentment or something else, Wang Mei’s punch sent Lu Guoliang reeling.
A front tooth, along with blood and gum tissue, flew out of his mouth!
Countless other women, aunts and grandmothers, who were once vibrant young girls, surrounded him, this old man their shared nightmare.
They had had this nightmare countless times, terrified and helpless, always begging for mercy.
But this time was different. A cool breeze brought them courage, and they glared at Lu Guoliang.
Why should they suffer while he enjoyed a life of luxury?
Lu Guoliang had long forgotten who Wang Mei was, he didn’t even remember these women, he was just shocked that these weak women dared to attack him.
Seeing them closing in, he started laughing maniacally, as if to bolster his courage, shouting hysterically, “I know! This is all fake! An illusion!”
He, Lu Liang, had dared to follow his brother in those dangerous activities back then, he wasn’t easily scared.
Trying to scare him into a heart attack? Wu Heng could dream on.
Lightning illuminated Lu Guoliang’s increasingly malicious expression as he roared and fought with the women.
However, it was Lu Guoliang who screamed.
Noisy.
Incredibly noisy.
Zhou Dagui, the village chief, almost seventy years old and an early sleeper, was woken by the commotion outside.
Nights in Nan Nuo village were cool, and the rain earlier that evening made it even colder. Zhou Dagui quickly threw on a thin jacket and went to investigate. He noticed the light under his grandson, Zhou Yi’s, bedroom door.
He peeked inside. It was past 1 a.m., and Zhou Yi was still at his desk, writing furiously, occasionally chuckling as if enjoying the exercises.
Zhou Dagui noticed that Zhou Yi’s shadow was unusually large, unlike a human’s, like… like…
Zhou Dagui couldn’t describe it. Hearing police sirens outside, he knew something big had happened and hurried out.
Luckily, the village chief’s house wasn’t far from Chengde Medical Clinic.
Besides the grim-faced police officers, many villagers, woken by the commotion, were standing around in their pajamas, whispering.
Some even climbed to higher ground, recording with their phones.
Zhou Dagui quickly squeezed through the crowd, intending to greet Officer Wang Jun and ask what happened, but upon seeing the person inside the Chengde Medical Clinic courtyard, he almost fainted.
“He…he…he’s crazy?! What is he doing?! He’s not from our village, is he?” Zhou Dagui, after recovering slightly, pointed at the madman-like old man in the courtyard, his voice filled with fear.
