Author: 年终 / Nian Zhong

Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/

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Chapter 14: Reduction of Good Karma

“My ghost is a vengeful one,” Cheng Songyun introduced first. “It can cover people with its sleeve, protecting them from spells.”

“A magic shield? That’s awesome,” Blondie perked up.

Cheng Songyun sighed. “Including myself, it can only protect up to two people. How long it lasts depends on how long I can hold out. Once its sleeve covers me, I start hallucinating, and it’s really scary.”

She shivered as she spoke.

“Mine is a child ghost. It can pass through walls and run around. Other evil entities usually don’t bother with it. But it can’t do much, not even pick up a leaf.” The gloomy boy took over the conversation. “At best, it can be a scout.”

Mei Lan: “Water ghost. It can hide me in water, even a cup of tea, but for that day, I have to offer an evil spirit as compensation… If not, it will take my lifespan.”

Blondie cursed. “The one surnamed Jia uses a painted skin to disguise a ghost, and surnamed Fang straight-up brought a seductive ghost. Damn it, after all this, I’m the only one who can fight.” 

“But at least Cheng Jie’s* decent. A shield is somewhat useful,” he glanced at Cheng Songyun.

*(Older) Sister (姐) Used as an address for women who are older or more senior than you as a show of closeness, fondness, or affection.

Cheng Songyun forced a smile.

After thinking for a while, she said, “How about this? Let the child ghost keep watch, and once they let their guard down, Mei Lan can go out and destroy a few talismans. Without the talismans, the cage shouldn’t be able to hold this guy… Um…” 

She looked at Blondie.

“Du Zhichao,” Blondie said. “Just one talisman from the fence is enough. I’ll kick the door open for you.”

“I’m the one to go out and destroy the talismans? How do I get out?” Mei Lan looked confused.

Cheng Songyun: “I’ll let some blood and have it flow out of the cage. You can follow the blood out. If you can hide in tea, blood should work too, right?” 

As for compensation, that was manageable. With so many evil spirits outside, once they got out, they could work together to catch one for Mei Lan.

“…My ghost says it can do that, as long as the surface is connected,” Mei Lan said after a moment, her face looking brighter.

“Good, good.” Cheng Songyun sighed in relief. “Let’s wait a little longer. If Xia Fang and the others don’t return by tomorrow, we’ll run.”

Having a plan calmed the four of them somewhat. Mei Lan carefully checked the talismans on the wooden fence, while the gloomy boy relaxed and closed his eyes to nap. Only Blondie, with a grim face, kept glaring at Doctor in the courtyard.

After Fourth Master returned, he went straight into the inner room. Doctor, however, remained awake the whole time, as if he didn’t need to sleep. He sat by the extinguished campfire, constantly twitching his white coat, occasionally muttering to the air, more like a lunatic than the actual lunatic in the neighboring cage.

At noon, Doctor wobbled over and threw a chunk of bloody meat into the cage.

“Eat it,” he said in a raspy voice. “If you don’t eat something with moisture, you won’t last a few days.”

No one touched the meat.

Doctor, seemingly on the verge of a breakdown, babbled incoherently, “Fresh… How can you not… Haa.”

“Idiot, get lost.” Blondie bared his teeth.

Cheng Songyun quickly stepped forward, saying softly, “Brother, we don’t want to eat people… Sister knows you’re in pain. Why not talk to me? It’s not too late. Maybe we can work together.”

Doctor looked at Cheng Songyun, as if awakening from a nightmare for a brief second. He stared at her for a long time, silently mouthing words that seemed to say “mom”.

But in the end, Doctor stiffly shook his head.

“It’s too late, too late!” He clawed at the wooden fence so hard his nails lifted off. “Too late, there’s no time…”

Then, he slowly turned around, staggering back to the campfire.

Cheng Songyun didn’t back away. She remained by the cage, watching intently. She noticed fresh bloodstains on Doctor’s white coat, vibrant red, as if they were seeping through from inside his clothes.

Back in his spot, Doctor covered his neck, staring blankly at the ground. He was completely still, save for the tears streaming down his face. His eyes were so red it looked like they were about to bleed.

Blondie couldn’t help but spit. “This guy is really fucking sick. It’s not his first time performing a sacrifice, yet he’s still freaking out.”

“Something’s wrong,” Cheng Songyun whispered. “Doctor’s acting way too strange.”

Blondie dismissed her and sat down, squinting to rest. Mei Lan, tired from the long wait, yawned and rubbed her eyes.

Cheng Songyun, however, remained by the cage, fully focused.

Two hours passed, and Doctor finally moved again.

He walked to the tree next to the cage and slowly took off his white coat. 

Rip! The fragile fabric was torn into a rope, which he tied around the short tree trunk.

The noise was loud, and it was close by, waking both Blondie and Mei Lan.

Cheng Songyun was about to say something when she suddenly closed her mouth—

From this angle, she could see clearly: a human face, the size of a fist, had appeared on Doctor’s exposed neck. Its tiny mouth opened and closed as if breathing. In just a few seconds, it bulged outward, nearly fully formed.

Doctor’s shirt was soaked with blood, bulging at several spots, shaped like severed limbs. A thin, malformed arm wriggled free from a seam in the shirt, its fingers moving slightly.

“Spare me, spare me…” 

Doctor looped the makeshift rope around his neck, sobbing as he thrust his head into the noose. 

As he whimpered, a twisted leg pushed out from his back, kicking furiously.

“Have mercy…”

He fell to his knees and suddenly leaned forward, hanging himself in a kneeling position.

Even in death, his eyes remained wide open, filled with terror.

Doctor was dead. The grotesque limbs on his body ceased growing, like dying buds. His body gradually stiffened, but his expression slowly changed. 

The bulging eyes gently closed, stopping halfway. His mouth twitched, twisting into a serene, peaceful smile.

Just like Mai Zi’s corpse.

Though the enemy had killed themselves, given how strange Doctor’s death was, no one felt relieved.

Mei Lan covered her mouth tightly, barely holding back a scream. Blondie was at a loss for words, backing up to the far side of the cage, his Blondie standing on end.

“W-What do we do now?” Blondie coughed. “The guard’s dead. Should we run?”

Cheng Songyun was trembling, but her voice was steady. “Let’s wait a bit longer. If Xiao Fang and Xiao Jia come back to this… scene…”

The Jade Buddha Gang might think their escape attempt was responsible for Doctor’s death and take their anger out on the two young men.

“Auntie, this is a golden opportunity!” Blondie’s voice tightened. “Let them figure it out on their own. If we wait any longer, no one will get out!” 

After saying that, he turned to Mei Lan, desperate. “I’ll do the bloodletting. Let’s go now.”

After all, Cheng Songyun and the gloomy boy weren’t necessary. Doctor’s creepy corpse was right next to the cage, and he couldn’t take it anymore.

Cheng Songyun stepped between him and Mei Lan. “Talk properly! Don’t use force—”

Blondie glared, raising a hand to push her aside. Just then, there was a commotion at the gate.

Jia Xu came in, supporting a heavily injured Fang Xiu, leaving bloody footprints with every step. Jia Xu had a basket full of familiar offerings on his back, and the chain hung loosely over Fang Xiu’s shoulder, its end empty.

The scarred man hadn’t returned with them.

As they entered, Fang Xiu’s gaze swept across the courtyard, finally landing on Doctor’s hanging body. 

For a moment, he visibly froze, then…

“Pfft.” He actually laughed.

The four in the cage: “?” 

Jia Xu, who had just started trembling: “?”

“My bad.” Fang Xiu coughed, turning to Jia Xu. “It’s fine, keep shaking.”

Seeing that Fourth Master wasn’t in the courtyard, Fang Xiu relaxed a little. Then, he noticed a strange sight…

Doctor had hanged himself with a skinny rope, and now two corpses—one kneeling, the other standing—looked like a cheerleading duo.

It was all Bai Shuangying’s fault. He’d laughed away ten years of good karma!

……

Meanwhile, Bai Shuangying wasn’t in the courtyard. 

Fang Xiu had spent half a day wandering the graveyard, stalling until dusk before heading back. He had planned to bring Bai Shuangying along, but Bai Shuangying refused.

He had other matters to attend to.

First, he enjoyed a fresh soul, then gnawed on a group of evil spirits. It had been a long time since he’d eaten so well. Though it barely scratched the surface of his long-standing hunger, he still felt incredibly satisfied.

…How wonderful. When was the last time he’d felt this good? 

…When was the last time he breathed the outside air?

Bai Shuangying lightly leapt onto a tombstone, gazing into the distance at the shadowy mountains through the rain. The rain had eased a little, and he could now make out the silhouette of Weishan. The mountain had an awkward shape, standing alone and leaning toward the village as if it would collapse at any moment.

Ugly, Bai Shuangying thought to himself.

He adjusted his sleeves in the rain, countless chains swaying lightly in the air. This place was vast, and unseen shadows stretched out in all directions, disappearing beyond the horizon.

In the next moment, something “twisted” entwined itself around the chains. It spread like a toxin through veins, flowing along the chains until it disappeared into the void.

Bai Shuangying hadn’t told Fang Xiu, but if he wanted to taint causality in such a complex way without being detected by the underworld, it wasn’t impossible…

In fact, he could slowly corrupt things, doing it bit by bit. But by the time he’d finished corrupting just one enemy, the ritual would likely be over. It was such a clumsy and time-wasting method that it wasn’t even worth mentioning.

After all, this approach only worked for himself.

After completing this round of corruption, Bai Shuangying leapt off the tombstone.

Satisfied, he stretched, deftly rolling up his sleeves and beginning to gather the wild herbs growing near the graves; herbs known to stop bleeding and reduce swelling. While accompanying Fang Xiu through the graveyard, Bai Shuangying had made a note of their location.

He’d checked earlier and confirmed that Fang Xiu’s injuries weren’t deep. It certainly wasn’t enough to damage muscles or bones, but he still found those wounds unsightly.

Things that annoyed him should simply be dealt with.

As he thought of those blood-soaked wounds, Bai Shuangying instinctively touched the small blood-red mole. The little mole was still firmly in place, the contract they had established remained intact.

There was still some time left before nightfall. He figured Fang Xiu wouldn’t get himself killed in just a short while.

…Probably, right?

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The author has something to say:

Fang Xiu: Definitely not. 

Fang Xiu: But I did lose my good karma.

Bai Shuangying: ? You had good karma to begin with? (surprise)

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