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墨書 Inktalez
Living Funeral
“Chen Fei, you finally decided to come.” His voice was calm yet filled with a sense of weariness.
The three of us were taken aback. Gao Ling was the first to react, saying, “Fei, the ghost is talking to you!”
I nodded lightly to acknowledge that I understood.
“Are you Hu Qingming?” I asked after a moment of silence. But he replied, “I am not Hu Qingming; I am his aide.”
“Aide?”
Hearing this made it seem like Hu Qingming was doing quite well! Gao Ling remarked, “What does an aide even mean?” After saying this, he seemed to sense something was off and added, “But an aide is also a ghost, right?”
Zhang Xun spoke up, “Are you here in place of Hu Qingming to wait for Chen Fei?”
The aide replied, “You could say that.”
“What do you want me for?”
The aide said, “I’m waiting for you to help Qingming. He has been suffering too much lately, so I hope you can assist him.”
From the aide's words, it seemed that Hu Qingming was still alive. I asked, “How can I help him?” The aide explained, “Qingming has been haunted by Wandering Ghosts since birth, so his fate has not been good. But from another perspective, once Qingming passes a certain threshold, he is destined never to die.”
If he won’t die, then what do I need to help with? I felt a bit confused at this point.
The aide continued, “Do you want to meet Qingming?”
Hu Qingming could be a legendary figure. Since I can see him, I asked, "Is he here?"
The aide replied, "He is here."
I turned to Zhang Xun and asked, "What do you think?" Zhang Xun responded, "It's fine." Gao Ling looked the most displeased and said, "What’s so good about seeing a ghost?" After Gao Ling spoke, the aide shifted his gaze to her, while the other souls who had not opened their eyes also turned their heads in our direction.
Gao Ling immediately backed down and said, "I was just saying; it wouldn't hurt to take a look." Once she said this, the attention of the souls shifted away.
"Follow me," the aide instructed.
The title of aide seemed to belong to the Republic of China era. However, it hadn't been long since the late Qing Dynasty transitioned into the Republic of China. It appeared that after Hu Qingming left Zuo Zongtang, he had been doing well. But hadn’t Zuo Zongtang severed Hu Qingming's ties with the Wandering Ghosts?
It seemed that those ties were not completely severed after all. We followed the aide down a dark tomb passage, with a group of Ghost Soldiers trailing behind us. I asked, "Were you born alongside Hu Qingming's Wandering Ghosts, or were you living people who died later?"
The aide replied, "We died on the battlefield later. Thanks to Qingming for keeping us around; otherwise, we would have become lost souls long ago."
It seemed there was a backstory here. After walking with the aide for quite some time, none of the others who entered with us remained. I asked, "Did you kill everyone who came in with us?"
The aide answered, "We didn't kill them; the Yin Qi here is too heavy, causing them to die from its influence."
Indeed, the Yin Qi here was thick. It wouldn’t be easy for an ordinary person to survive in such an environment. I didn’t press further. After making one last turn, we entered a larger burial chamber than the previous ones. In the center stood a stone coffin.
I asked, "Is Hu Qingming inside?"
The aide confirmed, "Yes. Qingming is inside." He then approached the coffin while we stood still for a moment.
The aide addressed the coffin, saying, "Qingming, Mr. Chen has arrived."
“Qingming，Qingming…” The officer called out several times. The other souls stood by as if in a daze, and after one of them shouted, a sound came from inside the coffin, as if someone was knocking on the lid. Three knocks followed in succession, prompting the officer to signal the other souls to open the coffin.
As the lid was lifted, we saw a figure slowly sit up from within the coffin, moving very slowly.
I observed this person—a young face that looked nothing like someone who had lived for hundreds of years. He wore a splendid brocade robe, his features distinct and clear, with short hair that gave him an air of competence.
He stepped out of the coffin.
He called my name, Chen Fei. I responded, staring at Hu Qingming, momentarily stunned for a few seconds before feeling a dull ache in my head, as if something was trying to surface in my memory.
After calling my name, Hu Qingming fell silent and simply gazed at me.
Gao Ling asked, “Are you dead or alive?”
Hu Qingming glanced at Gao Ling and replied, “Alive.” He continued, “I have been sleeping here for nearly a century. Chen Fei, are you here to fulfill your promise?” At that moment, my mind felt muddled.
I asked, “What promise?”
Hu Qingming said, “It’s time for you to remember.” Is it really time? The moment I saw Hu Qingming, my thoughts became chaotic. His voice echoed in my mind like an incantation.
Finally, it felt as if something was about to be unveiled. Hu Qingming had approached me and said, “Haven’t you remembered yet?”
I shook my head. Hu Qingming sighed and said, “Then let me help you recall.”
Zhang Xun, thinking Hu Qingming intended to do something to me, stepped in front of me. Hu Qingming remarked, “Don’t you want him to remember?” After those words fell, Zhang Xun’s hand slowly dropped away from in front of me. Hu Qingming continued, “Chen Fei, when we first met, you were able to help me sever the ties with the Wandering Ghosts. Indeed, you accomplished that later on.”
I asked, “And then what?”
Hu Qingming said, "Later, didn't you remember? You helped me, so naturally I returned the favor, but none of us succeeded."
"Us?" I asked.
"Think about it," Hu Qingming replied.
As Hu Qingming's hand touched my forehead, a sudden sharp pain shot through me. It felt as if I had fainted, and in my dazed state, I heard Zhang Xun and Gao Ling calling my name. However, I couldn't respond. At the same time, I felt a door slowly being pushed open.
The door was tall and massive; standing before it made me feel as small as an ant.
When the door opened, a burst of light flooded in, and I saw several figures standing before me—some unfamiliar faces and some familiar ones.
There were only two familiar faces: Jiang Changsheng and Hu Qingming. The third person was someone I didn't recognize. The three of them stood there waiting for me, but I was curious as to why Jiang Changsheng was there. Wasn't he supposed to be trying to kill me?
My mind was a bit muddled.
The third person was a plump man, but he wasn't Zhang Pangzi.
He spoke up, "Chen Fei, you finally made it."
I instinctively responded with a hum. The plump man rushed over and grabbed my hand, and for a moment, I stood still in surprise. Hu Qingming said, "Tongwen, why are you pulling him? Does he not know how to walk?"
Tongwen? Is that Xiao Tongwen? I turned to look and noticed that the large door behind me had vanished.
At that moment, Hu Qingming appeared much younger—not in appearance but in feeling. In contrast, Jiang Changsheng wore a gloomy expression. It seemed like Jiang Changsheng and I shared the same master, yet I wondered how the four of us ended up together.
My curiosity deepened as my mind remained somewhat foggy.
However, Xiao Tongwen kept pulling me forward and said, "Chen Fei, are you late because you're scared?"
Xiao Tongwen didn't pay any attention to Jiang Changsheng and Hu Qingming. Dressed like a wealthy lord from the Republic of China era, I thought to myself, what do I have to be afraid of? Xiao Tongwen replied, "I knew you wouldn't be scared."
As I looked around, I realized we were in an old mansion with high walls and a deep courtyard. I then asked, "Where is this place?"
After my question, Xiao Tongwen responded, "You don't know?"
I stared at Xiao Tongwen while he puffed out his round belly. Xiao Tongwen continued to look at me.
"This is a dangerous place; you haven't lost your memory, have you? If you've forgotten everything, we should go back. Otherwise, we'll die for nothing," he warned.
I was speechless.
Hu Qingming and Jiang Changsheng also stepped forward. Xiao Tongwen suggested, "If he doesn't remember anything, let's just go back. We can enjoy hot pot instead."
"Do you dare?" Jiang Changsheng said in a grim voice.
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