Chapter Twelve: Seeking the Truth

A violent tremor ran through my entire body as I scrambled out of the coffin. Staring at that casket half-buried in the earth before me, a chill swept over me from head to toe. The relief that had come with my recent rescue vanished in an instant, replaced by a blaze of fury rising from the depths of my heart.

All my life, though I could hardly be called a saint—getting into the occasional schoolyard fight, teasing girls, or sneaking a peek at the widow next door out of childish mischief—I, Wu Dao, have always prided myself on a clear conscience. I never did anything truly wicked, so why, of all times, should some vengeful spirit choose now to haunt me?

I bellowed into the empty courtyard, my voice echoing off the walls, “Who the hell are you? If you want to kill me, show yourself! Stop playing these damned ghost tricks!”

But no answer came back. When my outburst was spent, exhaustion swept over me, leaving my limbs weak. I crouched on the ground, hands clutching at my hair, my mind in chaos and my chest tight with frustration. I wanted so desperately to vent, but had no idea at whom my anger should be directed.

Wang Feiyang stood silently by my side, his face betraying no emotion. Suddenly, I lurched to my feet and seized him by the collar. I felt as if I was about to lose my mind, and shouted at him, “Tell me what you know! That night—when your family was slaughtered—what did you see? Your grandmother must have told you something. Don’t hide it from me!”

Wang Feiyang’s brow furrowed slightly. He brushed my hand aside and asked coldly, “Do you think your suffering is so great?”

“Isn’t it?” I retorted. “My grandfather is probably dead, and that ghost woman keeps tormenting me. If it weren’t for Zuo Daoyin’s help last night, I’d be dead already. Tonight she buried me alive for sport! I’ve never wronged her—why is she trying to kill me?”

“You think you have it worse than I do?” Wang Feiyang’s indifferent reply left me speechless. He was right—his entire family had been wiped out.

At that moment, Wang Feiyang’s own emotions flared. “Wu Dao, my family owes nothing to yours—nothing to you. Yet because of you, my grandfather lost his life, and now all seven of my family are in their graves alongside him.”

“In their graves because of me? You keep saying all this started with me. Then tell me—what exactly did I do that doomed your family?”

“You want the truth?” Wang Feiyang suddenly asked, then answered himself, “Fine. I’ll take you to find it right now.”

With that, he strode out of the coffin shop without looking back. I didn’t hesitate and followed after him.

Wang Feiyang walked straight toward Zuo Daoyin’s house. My heart skipped a beat—I already guessed what he intended. At this point, only Luo Xiu could resolve our questions, but Zuo Daoyin was always keeping watch at his home. How could we possibly see Luo Xiu again?

We hid in a nearby alley outside Zuo Daoyin’s residence. Wang Feiyang told me that before his grandmother died, she had revealed that all these misfortunes stemmed from me, and that whether the curse could ultimately be escaped depended on me alone.

I wanted Wang Feiyang to explain further, but he insisted that was all he knew. For the whole truth, we would have to rely on Luo Xiu.

He then shared his plan with me. After hearing it, I frowned deeply, uncertain whether it would succeed. Still, with matters come to this, I had no other choice but to go along.

So I stepped out of the alley alone and headed straight for Zuo Daoyin’s house. I knocked hard on the courtyard gate, shouting loudly for Grandpa Zuo, asking if he was home.

The door was soon opened, and there stood Zuo Daoyin with his scarred face and his signature pale green eyes. He asked what brought me there so late.

I hurriedly said, “Grandpa Zuo, today at the grain depot, you performed the rites and burned the bodies of Wang Feiyang’s family. Where are their ashes now?”

He replied that the police had sent them to the funeral home, waiting to find Wang Feiyang so they could be buried in a good spot according to feng shui.

I pressed on, “Grandpa Zuo, aren’t you skilled in divination? Can’t you tell where Wang Feiyang is?”

But Zuo Daoyin just sighed and said that since the vengeful ghost appeared, his divinations had stopped working.

Though I wondered how such arts could fail, inwardly I was relieved. I’d feared he might see through our intentions, but clearly, I’d been overthinking it. I quickly said, “Grandpa Zuo, no wonder you didn’t know Wang Feiyang had already appeared—your arts had lost their power.”

He was taken aback for a moment, then urgently asked where Wang Feiyang was.

Taking the bait, I replied, “He’s at your house right now. He sent me to find you—wants your help to retrieve his family’s ashes from the funeral home and pick a good burial site.”

Zuo Daoyin asked, “Why didn’t he come himself?”

I shook my head. “I don’t know. But after seeing him, I thought he seemed changed—silent and withdrawn, shaved his head, always wearing his hood, afraid of being recognized, acting all mysterious.”

Zuo Daoyin sighed. “He must be hiding from the police.” He came out, asking me to take him to Wang Feiyang.

I nodded, agreeing, and we set off for Wang Feiyang’s family’s paper shop. As soon as we left, Wang Feiyang slipped from the alley and vaulted over Zuo Daoyin’s courtyard wall.

To buy Wang Feiyang more time, I deliberately slowed our pace, but the shop wasn’t far, and I couldn’t delay too long. Zuo Daoyin seemed to notice nothing, walking at a steady, unhurried pace.

When we arrived at the paper shop and saw no sign of Wang Feiyang, Zuo Daoyin suddenly turned and fixed me with a cold stare, squeezing out two words through clenched teeth: “Where is he?”

My heart lurched—he’d caught on much faster than I’d hoped. Struggling to stay calm, I replied, “He was here just now—maybe he stepped out for something. Let’s wait a bit, he should be back soon.”

Trying to act natural, I even called out for Wang Feiyang a few times, though of course no one answered. All I could do was buy as much time as I could; and if, in the end, Wang Feiyang didn’t show, I’d just feign ignorance. Zuo Daoyin couldn’t really blame me.

But after barely a couple calls, Zuo Daoyin abruptly cut me off. “Wu Dao, stop pretending.”

I turned to him, feigning confusion. “Grandpa Zuo, what do you mean?”

A sudden flash of anger lit up his strange green eyes, making me shudder. Then he asked if I’d been to his attic earlier that day.

I jumped, wondering if he truly knew everything. I shook my head quickly, denying it.

He snorted coldly. “Not only did you go, Wang Feiyang went with you. And you both saw the woman in the attic, didn’t you?”

My pupils contracted sharply—I was instantly flustered. Zuo Daoyin’s eyes grew colder and colder, and at last I even saw a flicker of murderous intent there. “You deliberately lured me here, just to buy Wang Feiyang more time to get into my attic and see that woman again, didn’t you?”

“Grandpa Zuo, I don’t know what you’re talking about—I don’t understand.”

Just as I tried to protest further, Zuo Daoyin suddenly let out a low growl and lifted his withered, bony arm, seizing my throat in a vice-like grip!