"Mengmeng needs your sister's care right now; you can't keep disrupting her life. Doing so will ruin Mengmeng's happiness; she has suffered enough, and you should do something for her," I reasoned with her. Upon hearing this, Ali's birth mother knelt down and began to sob, saying she was cold and lonely and only wished for deliverance. Yet, no one was capable of delivering her soul.

I recalled the police finding a copy of the Sutra of the Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva's Original Vows in her closet during the crime scene investigation. That book seemed unrelated to the case and was left behind by the officers. I asked if she had ever read that sutra in life. She shook her head, completely unaware such a book was hidden in her home. Suddenly, an inspiration struck me; I felt that book might be able to help her.

Thus, I made an appointment with her to meet at the murder scene—this very room—at midnight the next day. Ali’s adoptive mother and I arrived around ten o’clock, first locating that copy of the Sutra of the Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva's Original Vows. We sat in these exact spots, silently reciting the sutra while waiting for Ali's birth mother's spirit to appear.

She was punctual. She materialized precisely at midnight, still in that ghastly state: head slumped, hair obscuring her face, blood dripping ceaselessly from her entire body. I invited her to sit down and listen peacefully to my chanting. Then, I read the entire Sutra of the Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva's Original Vows aloud seven times, stopping only when my mouth was dry and my throat could produce no more sound.

When I asked if she felt better, she lifted her head and said she felt much improved. I noticed her eyes were no longer terrifyingly red, but only faintly bloodshot. Only then did Ali's adoptive mother let out a sigh of relief. After that, we came to this room every night to recite the sutras for her, continuing for forty-nine days—seven times seven. On the final day, she suddenly reverted to her appearance in life, happily telling us she could ascend to heaven. Before leaving, she wished to tell me a secret as repayment for my deeds.

"What secret?" I pressed Little Shu impatiently. After such a long detour, we were finally nearing the point; his talent for dramatic suspense was truly formidable.

"The secret is this," Little Shu said, rising and walking into the bedroom. He pointed toward the open closet and instructed me, "Tear off the wooden paneling at the back of the bedroom closet; there is a passage inside that leads to another world, where some of my possessions are kept. Ali's birth mother overheard this by chance from other wandering spirits while she was still roaming."

The story concluded there. I inwardly marveled at Ali's hidden background. Had I been in the place of her adoptive parents, I probably would have done the same, never mentioning her birth parents, allowing the shadow of that past to remain forever behind us. Regardless, life must go on; the sun rises every day from the east.

"After that, did you enter the passage alone?" I asked with a touch of curiosity, though what I really wanted to know was whether he truly possessed the courage to face that unknown world by himself.

Little Shu grunted in affirmation, then continued, "I had originally intended to ask Ali’s adoptive mother to go in with me. But she was terrified, and moreover, the dangers inside were unpredictable. Ali still needed care, and she couldn't take that risk. Out of gratitude, she gave me the keys to the house so I could come here whenever I needed to."

"So, you went to the villa alone the very first time?" Recalling the two perilous encounters I’d had there, my admiration for Little Shu swelled.