Chapter 29: Possessed by an Evil Spirit

The grim news brought by the young man shattered the tranquility of the night in Huaigu Village.

Liu Shan offered a hurried apology to Wu Chang, and, despite being half-drunk, he scrambled to gather his men and set off toward the other end of the village. Wu Chang, naturally, would not let such an unexpected event pass him by, and he followed in their wake.

On the way, he pulled aside a villager who had been verifying the "Mountain Ghost" with talismans to ask what had happened. The man, named Liu Jinfu, gave him a brief explanation. Ever since the evil spirits began to plague the village, the children and women were relocated to the mountain peak near the village on the eve of the Year-End Festival. The peak was rich in yang energy, making it difficult for the spirits to approach. Only after the festival concluded and the spirits were suppressed would they be brought back.

However, the infestation had been exceptionally severe this year. For the past two days, even those hiding on the peak had fallen victim to the spirits.

The girl mentioned earlier, Xiao Ning, was the granddaughter of the village head, Liu Shan. Just turned sixteen, she was blossoming into a lovely and gentle young woman, the object of affection for every youth in the village. Liu Ning was inherently bright, not only the apple of Liu Shan’s eye but the pride of the entire village. If there was anyone whose victimization by the spirits was most unbearable, it was her—for the village youths, the order of importance might even be reversed.

As the group left the valley and climbed the mountain path, they had barely cleared the village when a thin, dark shadow caught up with them. It was a boy who appeared to be fourteen or fifteen, but due to chronic malnutrition, his stature was that of a child of eleven or twelve. Dressed in rags stuffed with straw for warmth and wearing leaky straw sandals, he ran while clapping his hands and shouting:

"Fire, fire dragon, the fire dragon is up the mountain again! The immortal has come!"
"Run! Run!"
"How lively!"
"Hee-hee-hee..."

Liu Shan and the others, hearts heavy with worry for Liu Ning, forged ahead without looking back. But Liu Jinfu, unable to tolerate the boy’s noise, threw a stone at him and snapped, "Shut up!"

The stone struck the boy on the forehead, causing him to stumble and land hard on his backside. Tears welled up in his eyes from the pain, yet he continued to giggle, mindlessly chanting, "Fire, fire, fire..."

Wu Chang glanced at the boy and asked in confusion, "Who is he?"

Liu Jinfu spat on the ground. "That jinx is a fool. The village head, out of kindness, thought to keep him as a village guardian to ward off bad luck, but he’s cursed with such hard luck that he can survive in the mountains eating grass roots and drinking dew, yet he brings nothing but chaos to the village."

"To be making such a racket at a time like this—he’s likely a spy for the spirits. If anything happens to Xiao Ning, I’ll cut out his tongue myself."

When they arrived at the dwelling on the summit, the atmosphere was stifling; there was no need to ask what had happened.

Passing through the silent crowd, they found a burly, bearded man dressed as a hunter confronting Liu Shan inside the house.

"Uncle Shan, can’t you face reality? The people can’t hold on any longer! To prevent another Xiao Ning, we must start the Year-End Festival early!"

"If you can’t make that decision, then step down as village head and let me do it!"

Liu Shan’s lips trembled with rage as he pointed a finger at the man. "You scoundrel! How dare you say such things? Have you been hoping for something to happen to Xiao Ning just to force my hand?"

"I didn't..." the man began.

Seeing the conflict escalating, Wu Chang gave a dry cough, interrupting their argument. "Are you here to save lives or to bicker? Where is she? Let me see."

Liu Shan lowered his hand, snorted, and then forced a strained smile toward Wu Chang. "Please, follow me to the inner room, Great Hero."

Inside, Wu Chang saw the Liu Ning everyone had spoken of. His first impression was not as beautiful as Liu Jinfu had described. It was not her appearance that struck him, but the fact that she had not passed peacefully. The girl had been attacked by the spirit in her sleep; the disheveled bedding showed signs of her struggle. Her face was deathly pale and frozen in terror, showing she had struggled all the way from the bed to the floor.

In her agony, she had clawed at her own hair, leaving bloody patches of baldness, and her slender neck was covered in ten dark, bruised finger marks—marks she had inflicted upon herself. Those possessed by spirits retain residual evil energy, and anyone who touches them will attract the spirits themselves. The body must be exposed to direct sunlight for a full day before it can be shrouded. Thus, Liu Ning remained on the floor, frozen in her final moment of struggle.

Liu Shan could not bear to look at his granddaughter. He turned his head away; even this man, once the toughest in the village, could not maintain his composure in the face of such sudden, profound grief.

Just as Wu Chang was about to offer his condolences, a sudden inspiration struck him. He stepped forward to examine the body.

The act caused an immediate uproar among the villagers behind him.

"Great Hero, you mustn't! Xiao Ning still carries the spirit's taint, you cannot touch her!" cried Liu Shan.

"Stop! What are you doing to her body!" shouted the burly hunter.

"Stay back! If this outsider goes mad, don't let him hurt the rest of us!" cried another villager.

Wu Chang ignored the commotion. After a brief assessment of Liu Ning’s state, he slowly turned back and said, "She is only temporarily shocked out of her soul. She can still be saved."

"Truly?" Joy flashed in Liu Shan’s eyes.

Wu Chang nodded.

If he could save Liu Ning, he could cement the persona he had cultivated and gain the support of Huaigu Village. When the Year-End Festival arrived, the entire village would serve as his home field.

He went through the motions of chanting a mantra and then shouted, "Flag, come forth!" The Soul-Cleansing Command Flag from his personal storage appeared in his hand. This feat of producing an object from thin air stunned the villagers into silence, all eyes fixed upon him in awe.

Holding the flag, Wu Chang paced around Liu Ning with specific steps, murmuring incantations. Under normal circumstances, someone with the authority to use the Soul-Cleansing Flag could drive it with their own energy without much preparation. But to maximize his attribute allocation, he hadn't invested in energy; thus, to activate the flag, he had to rely on the method Chi Yuan had taught him, coordinating specific steps with the incantations.

Yet, this very complexity only made the villagers believe more firmly in his true prowess, their eyes filled with growing reverence.

He waved the flag three times. Accompanied by a faint white light, the world turned black and white in Wu Chang's vision. The living appeared white; the dead appeared black. Liu Ning, lying on the floor, appeared in a grey state between life and death. Her body had begun to turn black, but a thin white thread emerged from her, drifting out the window.

That thread was Liu Ning’s living soul.

Possession had forced her soul from her body; if it were returned in time, she could be saved. Wu Chang stood still, holding the flag, and with a mere thought, his vision extended along the white thread. His gaze passed through the window, across the safety zone of the summit, down the mountain, and to the foot of the slope.

Only near the road leading out of the valley did he finally see the white soul of Liu Ning. Her soul looked bewildered, drifting along with a deep red speck of light. Wu Chang recognized that red light—it was a manifestation of resentment, carrying a bloody dying wish.

He waved the Soul-Cleansing Command Flag to sever the connection between the resentment and Liu Ning’s soul, guiding her soul back toward her body. Then, he locked his gaze on the deep red speck, his eyes filled with curiosity. This was the first time he had seen a manifestation of resentment that could move on its own without a host.

"Let me see," he whispered, "what exactly you are."