Chapter 79 – Recollection

A familiar scent of incense filled his nostrils as Wei Yang opened his eyes, looking around in confusion. He found himself back in the room with burning candles. The beams were still as high as before, and the drapes hung like long snakes, winding down. The wooden tablets on the incense table were densely arranged, exuding an intimidating solemnity. The flickering candlelight and mottled shadows created a strange, eerie silence in the room.

Outside, the noise started again. The small hands pushed open the slightly ajar door once more, stumbling over the high threshold and running along the corridor. However, unlike last time, although his body was running, Wei Yang felt a peculiar sense of detachment, as if his consciousness and body were separated in a half-asleep state. He knew he was experiencing it but couldn’t control it—vivid yet helpless, like a wandering spirit.

With this strange sense of detachment, he watched himself leave the ancestral hall, pass through the corridor, and run to the small courtyard again. The men were still standing in the courtyard, and the bare-chested woman with disheveled black hair was still being firmly pressed to the ground. But Wei Yang suddenly realized he could hear what the chaotic voices were saying—private whispers and shouts from the people in the courtyard.

“Granny Jiang, Er Niu has been possessed by the snake spirit. She’s been mad for seven or eight days. Please save her!”

“It’s all her husband’s fault. Others warned him, but he still went to disturb that nest of snakes! The big ones are as thick as a wrist—they must have become spirits…”

“Don’t say that. Their family has been cursed recently. Even Huzi has started to have a fever. All the strong men in our village are here. Will something else happen?”

“Granny Jiang is here. We must listen to her. The yellow chicken and strong wine have been offered. We’re just waiting for her…”

The chaotic words came like waves, one after another. Wei Yang was distracted, wanting to hear more clearly. But the woman being pressed to the ground suddenly raised her head, her snake-like face glaring fiercely in his direction, her vertical pupils glowing with a sinister light.

The scene became chaotic again. Amid the chaos, Wei Yang started running again, faster and more urgently than before, his heart pounding. He suddenly remembered what was supposed to happen next—he would burst into his grandmother’s embroidery room and see something he shouldn’t. He wanted to stop this body from moving, but the small body didn’t stop. Instead, it fell to the ground with a thud.

Like watching an old video replaying, he watched himself struggle to get up, his small hand resting on the door panel. The door silently slid open.

His heart clenched into a knot. Wei Yang widened his eyes, but this time, his gaze wasn’t fixed on the thin, withered figure. Everything in the room rushed into his vision. An elegant couch was placed by the window, with crimson tassels hanging down. A low cabinet leaned against the wall, and a basket of colorful threads sat nearby. A half-finished embroidery was stretched on a frame, the silver needle reflecting a faint light.

In the corner, there was a small shrine. Incense candles were burning, and a blue mist enveloped the altar. Under the candlelight and the offerings, a wooden statue was partially hidden. It was a small, delicate fox, standing on its hind legs, its fox face smiling, its fluffy tail wrapped around its body like half a garment…

Wei Yang shuddered. At that moment, the figure who had been leisurely combing its hair suddenly stopped and turned around.

He saw its face.

Wei Yang’s grandmother wasn’t ugly. On the contrary, she had always possessed a sharp beauty. Her identity as a Jiang woman gave her an unattainable arrogance and ethereality. Time had been kind to her beauty. In Wei Yang’s memory, his grandmother had always been a noble and elegant old woman, with meticulously crafted makeup and flawless posture.

But the face before him wasn’t the one he remembered. It was a pale, twisted face that no longer looked human—more like a fox wearing human skin. The corners of its eyes slanted upward, its pupils glowing with an eerie light. Blood dripped from its grinning mouth, as if it had just dipped its head into a bowl of hot blood to drink.

In front of it were several open cosmetic boxes. A chill ran down Wei Yang’s spine. He could almost imagine how such a monster had applied makeup, hiding its fox face beneath layers of powder…

Was this monster his grandmother?

His body suddenly felt light as a large hand embraced him, shielding him from the grotesque sight. In the darkness, a familiar scent lingered in his ear. Someone whispered softly, “Don’t look, Yangyang. Those aren’t things you should see. Come back to the ancestral hall with Grandpa. With our ancestors here, we’ll all be safe…”

The voice was stern yet gentle. Wei Yang’s tense heart slowly relaxed. He wanted to lean into his grandfather’s embrace, but suddenly, the space in front of him was empty, and he fell to the ground.

Everything before him changed. The day turned into night, and a cold wind howled outside the window. Branches slapped against the corridor, as if some ghostly creature was knocking on the door, trying to break in. Wei Yang struggled fiercely, but his small body didn’t get up. Instead, it curled into a ball, trying to hide under the table. The room was pitch black, with only a few beams of pale moonlight shining through the cracks in the door.

In the distance, someone was arguing loudly.

“Jiang Lan! That’s your grandson! Make the fox spirit leave! Hurry up and drive it away!”

“Do you think I don’t want to? Do you think I don’t want to? Immortal Lady, didn’t you say that child is a curse? I’m the one who’s supposed to be the offering! I’m the offering!”

“Get out of the way! Yangyang, hide! Don’t come out!”

“Hahahaha, he killed the second family, and now he’s coming for me? Wei Changfeng, why did you pick him up? Why did you pick him up? He was supposed to die! Hahaha! Immortal Lady, please, please!”

Something shattered, the crisp sound echoing through the empty mansion. Wei Yang trembled even more, hugging his knees tightly. A suppressed sob escaped his throat. The sound was soft and faint, but in the quiet of the large house, it was as loud as thunder. He quickly covered his mouth, trying to stifle the sound, but it was too late…

In the pale moonlight, a dark shadow appeared. Its snout was pointed, its ears long, and its large, fluffy tail dragged on the ground. Its sharp claws tapped on the door, and with a gentle push, the door opened. Wei Yang’s eyes widened in terror as he saw a shadow standing in the empty corridor outside. It was a fox, its eyes glowing with a green light, its red tongue licking its sharp teeth. Its upturned snout bore a sinister grin.

Wei Yang tried to shrink further under the table. He wasn’t afraid of small animals, but looking at this fox, his body trembled uncontrollably. Its eyes didn’t belong to a real animal—they shone with malice, greed, and hatred, like the eyes of a true villain. With a gulp, he couldn’t hold back any longer. His body leaned forward, wanting to escape, but the fox was faster and more ferocious. With a single leap, it pounced on him like an arrow shot from a bow!

The gaping maw was so close that he could see its sharp teeth and the drool at the corners of its mouth. But he couldn’t dodge. His weak limbs had lost all strength, unable to move. At that moment, something in his chest suddenly grew warm, beating steadily, as if it were another heart.

A white light burst forth!

Wei Yang gasped sharply, waking up from the darkness. His arms, shoulders, chest, and every inch of his skin ached faintly. His ribs felt as if something was tightly squeezing them, making it hard to breathe. The next moment, the warm thing in his chest returned, beating steadily and powerfully, full of vitality. It was indeed a heartbeat, but the two were so close that their hearts seemed to be pressed together.

The next moment, he felt an itch on his neck. Black hair was buried deeply in the crook of his neck, and cold, sticky skin pressed against his shoulder, trembling slightly. The trembling was too intense, making it hard to tell where it was coming from. Wei Yang wasn’t fully awake, but he still struggled to reach out and hold the trembling shoulder.

“Brother… Qi…” Somehow, his voice was hoarse again, and there was a faint taste of blood in his mouth. But there was a familiar grassy fragrance in his nose—the scent of the shower gel they both used. So he knew who was tightly holding him now, who had once again protected his life.

Memories surged like a tide. He remembered how he had come to the mansion, how he had opened the storeroom, how he had found the fox statue in the wooden box. He also remembered the things in his dream—the shrine in the embroidery room, the face that looked like a fox, the hysterical argument on that dark night, and… the fox.

A pain shot through his chest. Something round and hard pressed against his ribs. It was probably the Bodhi bead that Brother Qi wore around his neck. And not long ago, he had also worn something around his neck—a protective jade talisman from Longhu Mountain that could emit a dazzling white light.

Was everything in the dream real? Did that jade save his life? What happened to the household immortal that was being worshipped? Has he really been possessed just now? Why had he completely forgotten everything from back then… Countless thoughts swirled in his mind, but Wei Yang didn’t say anything. Instead, he clung even tighter to the shoulders in front of him, so tight that he could hardly breathe. It was as if by holding on tightly, all the things that troubled and tormented him would eventually dissipate.

The two of them held each other tightly like this for who knows how long, until the trembling finally stopped. A soft, almost affectionate touch brushed against Wei Yang’s ear. Zhang Xiuqi whispered, “Yangyang.”

His voice was slightly muffled but tender and gentle, as if calling out to a beloved lover. Wei Yang’s Adam’s apple bobbed, and he swallowed the thought along with the taste of blood. His Brother Qi might not yet understand the meaning of “lover.” No matter how gentle he was, it couldn’t mean that. A bitter smile tugged at the corner of his lips as he struggled to sit up. “Brother Qi, did something happen to me just now?”

Only then did Wei Yang realize how disheveled he was. There was a large gash on his arm, the blood just starting to clot. Dust covered his entire body, and it seemed like he had rolled on the ground countless times. There was even a burn on his hand, blistering and oozing. The room he was in was no longer the small, cramped storeroom but the embroidery room he least wanted to enter. However, the room no longer had the ancient furniture or the hazy shrine. Instead, it was filled with wood shavings, a few copper coins, and the aftermath of a fierce battle.

Zhang Xiuqi seemed to have calmed down as well, slowly releasing the person in his arms. He didn’t look any better than Wei Yang. A long gash ran across his shoulder, and there were several claw marks on his arm. His eyes were bloodshot, and there was a trace of blood at the corner of his mouth. But he didn’t seem to care about his own disheveled state. Instead, he answered, “Possession. By a fox.”

The answer wasn’t surprising, but Wei Yang was still stunned. He suddenly reached out and grabbed Zhang Xiuqi’s chin, gently wiping away the blood at the corner of his mouth. “Your tongue… did you use your true saliva?”

The wound was impossible to ignore, like a red petal blooming on the pink tip of his tongue. The Little Celestial Master’s speech was slurred, as if he had injured his tongue. Wei Yang knew the purpose of the true saliva, but he also knew that this method wouldn’t be used lightly unless it was a critical moment. Had the situation just now reached that point?

Zhang Xiuqi also reached out a finger, gently touching Wei Yang’s crimson lips. “The sword would hurt you. My essence blood won’t.”

Wei Yang’s heart skipped a beat. Did that mean… the taste of blood in his mouth was from Brother Qi’s true saliva? The finger on his lips was cold, the pad of the finger slightly rough with a thin layer of callus. Just one finger, but it felt like all his senses were focused on it. Wei Yang took a light breath and grabbed that hand, struggling to stand up.

“I just found a wooden carving, and that’s why this happened. Brother Qi, let’s go back to the storeroom and take a look.” Without waiting for a response, he pulled Zhang Xiuqi up and hurriedly walked out the door.