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墨書 Inktalez
As the Evil Spirit saw my determined expression, as if I was resolute in taking him down with me, a hint of fear crossed his face. Seizing the moment, I pressed the object firmly against his chest and gritted my teeth. "I'll count to three. If you don't leave by then, even if it means killing Li Zhisheng, I'll make sure to take you down!"
With my eyes wide open, I stared intently at the Evil Spirit. "One, two, three!" The moment I reached three, Li Zhisheng's face returned to normal, his head tilting to one side; it seemed that the Evil Spirit had already left his body. But I couldn't let my guard down. I knew that the Vengeful Spirit was lurking in the shadows, watching my every move, and would surely strike again at the first opportunity.
However, he would likely be wary of the object in my hand, so he probably wouldn't dare to approach for a while. Still, it wasn't wise to linger here. I tightened my grip on the object and hoisted the unconscious Li Zhisheng up. At the same time, I called out to Hu Fang, who was still in shock nearby. "It's okay now, come over! We need to go."
When Hu Fang heard me call her name, she finally snapped back to reality. She rushed over to help me support Li Zhisheng and asked in confusion, "What on earth is going on?" I struggled to control my trembling legs and replied, "Now's not the time for explanations. Quickly help me look for any houses nearby with lights on."
The darkness had completely enveloped us. In a village with only thirty-nine houses, finding one with lights shouldn't be too difficult. Upon hearing my request, Hu Fang began scanning the area.
The surroundings were eerily silent; apart from our footsteps, there was no other sound. Hu Fang anxiously said, "In this godforsaken place, where could there possibly be a house with lights? Can you just tell me what you're trying to do instead of keeping me in suspense?"
Using the bright moonlight as a guide, I surveyed the dilapidated houses around us and explained to her, "Think about it: Prosperous Scene sealed off the doors; Danwei is looking for someone. You already know the first part; as for the second part... it refers to something with 'Dan' at its tail. So if there's a tail, there must be a head too. This could potentially be an acrostic poem."
She nodded thoughtfully after hearing my explanation. I continued, "Since we know it's an acrostic, the first line's desire to break free from the soul can only refer to Lock Heart. However, I've considered this possibility and found it unlikely because there's no surname 'Desire' in common surnames; even if there were, it would only be a hidden surname. Moreover, Lock Heart is part of the second line as well, making it improbable."
"So you're concluding that the person we're looking for is named Sheng Dan? But how do you know he’s definitely in Fengmen Village? This place has been abandoned for so long," she pressed on with more questions. I decided to explain everything at once: "The reason I know that person is in this village is also due to that second line. Since we are searching based on 'tail,' this could have two meanings: one refers to a name; the other indicates being at the end of the village because the poem only points to Fengmen Village as a location. Therefore, I'm convinced this person must be here!"
Just then, as we rounded a large Banyan Tree, we spotted a house ahead with lights on. The house was separated from the village by a river and appeared somewhat strange since all other buildings were closely packed together; this made me suspicious and wary of potential oddities.
"Is this the house you're looking for?" Hu Fang asked while pointing at it. However, I kept my doubts to myself and heightened my alertness instead. "Yes, it should be. Let's go..."
I had just intended to move when suddenly a child's voice echoed from behind us: "Mommy~ Mommy~ you're~ back~!"
Upon hearing those words, every hair on my body stood on end. I thought to myself, "Just when things seemed calm again, another wave hits! It seems this ghost village truly lives up to its reputation." Both Hu Fang and I froze in place from fear. Then that child’s voice continued innocently: "Mommy~ Mommy~ look back! Look! At me! Ah!"
In an instant, that innocent voice transformed into a series of roars that exploded in my ears. Fearing that Hu Fang might turn around, I shouted at her urgently: "Don't look back! Hurry into that house!" But she was already paralyzed with fear and unable to move.
In a moment of desperation, I had no choice but to forcefully carry Li Zhisheng on my back while supporting Hu Fang as we sprinted toward the house. Given Hu Fang's advanced age and frailty, she was unable to run at all, and the fear had left her in a daze. It was as if I was half-dragging her along, and several times along the way, she nearly stumbled. The furious roar of the Vengeful Spirit echoed behind us, occasionally shifting into a girl's voice calling for us to turn back.
I cursed inwardly, "Screw you! If I wanted to turn back, I'd be your grandson!" Just as the voice of the Vengeful Spirit drew closer, I reached the door of the house. At that moment, I could no longer care about politeness. Using my momentum, I slammed into the door, and as I entered, I kicked it shut with all my might.
The force of my kick caused all three of us to tumble to the ground. Lying there, I gasped for breath while Hu Fang remained in shock beside me. However, Li Zhisheng woke up from the fall, rubbing his head and asking hoarsely, "Where is this?"
Seeing him awake, I replied irritably, "This is hell." He shakily pushed himself up and looked around. "Am I in hell again?" His words made me chuckle. "You're not dead; it's thanks to your old bones being so tough."
At that moment, Hu Fang also sat up. I quickly asked if she was alright. She touched her arm and said, "I'm fine; just bumped my hand a bit—it's nothing." Seeing that both of them were mostly unharmed eased my worries significantly.
Suddenly, it struck me like a bolt of lightning—I realized with dread that since we entered the house, we hadn't heard a peep from the Evil Spirit nor any sound of it banging on the door. Could it be that it had deliberately driven us into this room? With that thought, my heart raced again.
"Are you all okay? I've been waiting for you for a long time." Following the voice, a young woman appeared before us. She wore tight jeans paired with a white shirt and a denim jacket. Her features were stunning—her skin smooth as silk and her brows delicate like willow leaves.
I hurriedly stood up from the ground and asked warily, "You... are Sheng Dan?" She nodded slightly. "Yes, that's me." Yet I remained on guard, fearing she might suddenly transform into the Evil Spirit and attack us—this had happened more than once before.
I cautiously probed further: "Then you must know how to break this Soul Separation Spell?" She glanced at Hu Fang and Li Zhisheng behind me and replied, "I do know how, but are you planning to leave them sitting on the floor like this?"
Hearing her words, I quickly helped Hu Fang and Li Zhisheng back up from the ground. "Since you know how, can you please help them? I'm begging you." I bowed deeply to her. She rushed to support me upright. "I will definitely help; it's just..." She glanced at her watch and continued, "The time isn't right yet; you should rest for now."
After she spoke, I looked around and noticed that the walls were covered with talismans meant to ward off evil spirits; that's why the Evil Spirit hadn't dared approach earlier. The only source of light in the room came from two candles.
However, aside from a table missing one leg, there was nowhere comfortable to rest inside. Reluctantly, I had no choice but to let Hu Fang and Li Zhisheng sit back down on the floor.
After everything that had happened earlier, they were both utterly exhausted. Li Zhisheng gazed around in confusion and asked Hu Fang, "How did I get here?" Hu Fang waved her hand dismissively; she didn't know where to begin explaining.
I saw that although the two of them had silver hair and their faces were covered with age spots, they seemed to be fine for now. I decided to ask Sheng Dan about Lock Heart.
She stood by a window with only half of it remaining, gazing into the distance as if lost in thought, her expression somewhat serious.
I walked over to her and asked, "What are you looking at?" To my surprise, she simply replied, "Ghost." "Ghost? You can see ghosts?" I asked in confusion. She turned her head to look at me and said, "You shouldn't be curious. After all, you can too." I was taken aback; I hadn't expected that she also possessed the Void Spirit.
"I see, I see. I didn't realize we were in the same boat," I stammered, unsure of how to start my questions. "You want to know about Lock Heart, right?" She seemed to see right through my thoughts. I quickly responded, "Yes, I don't understand what you mean by 'the time is not yet right.' How much longer do we have to wait?"
She sighed deeply. "Since you want to know, I'll tell you. The so-called Lock Heart refers to a type of Lock Heart knot. This kind of thing doesn't have a fixed form; any place where someone with strong obsessions died—like the bed or chair they were on—can become a Lock Heart knot. Because at midnight, they always return to the place with their obsessions and consume the souls of the living sitting there. However, since your friend is affected by the Soul Separation Spell, they won't be consumed. Instead, it will cause that Vengeful Spirit to be devoured by the Soul Separation Spell while also restoring your friend's soul that was harmed by it. The reason your friend is aging so quickly is also due to the damage caused by the Soul Separation Spell."
Hearing this, I interjected, "If that's the case, then aren't there many places with these so-called Lock Heart knots? Why come here specifically?" She brushed her hair back and looked at the bright moon above. "That's true, but you must understand that one place can only break one curse, and one ghost can only endure the Soul Separation Spell once. So unless you can find a single object where two people died with obsessions, after finding one, looking for another might not leave you enough time. But bringing you here has another purpose."
Her words made me tense up immediately as I pressed on, "Another purpose? What purpose?!" She pointed at my chest and continued, "The Nine Lives Star Map; another reason you're here is to seal Onizuka!" Suddenly, her expression turned serious.
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