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墨書 Inktalez
As Mu Qing walked, he introduced the situation of Baisha Village to the group. "Baisha Village is one of our Naxi ancient villages, known for its many old murals. It is said that these murals hide the secrets of Dongba Culture. However, things have been a bit strange in the village lately; when I visited last week, the villagers seemed to be in a state of panic."
Gradually, the group fell silent, as the increasing altitude made the path more difficult to traverse. Looking up, they saw the sky was a brilliant blue, with Yulong Snow Mountain towering before them. The massive mountain loomed ominously, making it hard to breathe.
Around noon, they finally spotted Baisha Village nestled among the trees in the distance. Just then, a sudden mountain wind swept through; despite the clear weather, it felt as if an invisible cloud had settled over them. Shen Tong looked toward Baisha Village and noticed a dark red aura swirling above the village, like an invisible hand tightly gripping it.
Before long, they arrived at the entrance of Baisha Village. A stone tablet stood at the village entrance, inscribed with the words "Bai Sha Ancient Village." Next to it was a wooden archway with a cloth banner hanging down, inscribed with Naxi characters. Mu Qing explained that it was meant to ward off evil spirits.
The group discussed briefly at the village entrance and decided that Mu Qing would take Lin Mingchang and Shen Tong to visit the village chief while Fang Zigui and Xiaoshuang would go to the Old Village Doctor to learn about the strange illness.
Lin Mingchang and Shen Tong followed Mu Qing along a muddy path, where most of the wooden houses had their doors and windows tightly shut. Occasionally, they caught glimpses of villagers peering at them through cracks in their doors.
They arrived in front of what appeared to be one of the larger wooden houses in the village, where a middle-aged man sat at the entrance with a troubled expression. "This is Mu Defu, the village chief of Baisha Village and my distant uncle," Mu Qing introduced him, greeting him in Naxi.
Upon hearing his name, Chief Mu Defu looked up and managed a faint smile upon seeing his visitors. He did not speak Chinese, but fortunately, Mu Qing was there to translate. The chief welcomed them inside; the interior was simple and dimly lit, with an unlit oil lamp hanging from heavy wooden beams and walls adorned with Dongba Script scrolls and patterns.
Once seated, Lin Mingchang took the initiative to ask, "What exactly does 'collective hallucination' refer to? When did it start?"
After translating Lin Mingchang's question, Chief Mu Defu's expression turned grave. He sighed deeply and began speaking rapidly in Naxi, his emotions clearly heightened as he recounted his thoughts.
Then Mu Qing asked a few more questions before translating for Lin Mingchang and Shen Tong:
"The village chief said that strange occurrences in the village have been increasing lately. First, everyone in the village began having nightmares, dreaming of the same scene every night: a large black bird opening its bloody beak to swallow the sky, plunging the entire world into darkness."
"Everyone had the same dream?" Lin Mingchang asked, somewhat surprised.
"Yes, from the elderly to the children, almost everyone in the village has experienced this. Then some people started showing unusual symptoms—fever, speaking nonsense, and even black tears flowing from the corners of their eyes. My uncle said that recently over a dozen people in the village have contracted this strange illness. He even invited a Dongba Priest to perform rituals, but there has been no effect at all."
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