Though the Hua Jinlan family and the Hua Gu family shared the same surname, they possessed no amicable kinship; rather, generations of enmity separated them. This truth was evident in the way Wang Jue had initially looked at Hua Gu.

Now, Wang Jue had awakened, yet whether Hua Jinlan had truly passed on remained a question ripe for speculation. Perhaps Hua Gu’s presence could confirm the reality of the situation. I caught her eye and subtly gestured. Hua Gu leaned over from beside me, turned her face slightly toward Wang Jue, and offered a small greeting. Immediately, a flush of heat spread from Wang Jue’s neck to his cheeks.

After a long moment, he finally managed, with an expression of awkwardness, "What are you doing here, too?"

Before Hua Gu could reply, the eminent monk murmured from the side, "She may be laid to rest."

And so, Hua Gu and I rose together and walked to Hua Jinlan’s corpse. We used shovels to scoop up the surrounding earth, slowly covering her until a small mound rose in place. Wang Jue first stood by, looking bewildered, but when he saw Hua Gu performing the manual labor typically reserved for men, he rushed over to help. Once the burial mound was finished, I found a thick branch, cut it down for a headstone, and planted it at the grave's apex. Borrowing the monk's cinnabar brush, I carefully inscribed Hua Jinlan’s name and her birth and death years onto the narrow surface.

By this time, the chanting of the eighty-one yellow talisman papers had concluded. The monk placed the final sheet over the candle flame. With a soft poof, the paper dissolved into a wisp of blue smoke, vanishing completely within the candlelight, leaving no ash, no residue.

Truly miraculous. I stared at the smoke, marveling that the paper had turned into something other than cinders. The monk smiled faintly and mumbled to himself, "It is done. In forty-nine times seven days, the new cycle will begin."

Hearing the monk’s words, Hua Gu and I both let out a sigh of relief, our tense nerves finally easing. I turned to look at Wang Jue; his face was a mask of confusion, his lips parted as if to speak, clearly having no idea what had transpired.

The last time we apprehended Scarface, I had withheld the full account of events from him; this time, though I wished to remain silent, I had no idea how to prepare him for the sight of that A-level wanted poster, or the police officers who were likely already massing outside the village perimeter. Although the nightmare had ended and the demon had departed, the mess left behind instilled a crushing sense of total defeat.

I pulled Wang Jue toward the ridge, leaving Hua Gu and the monk by Hua Jinlan’s grave. I recounted everything that had happened over the past period, urging him to simultaneously consider how to deal with that A-level warrant. As his friend, I could help him escape immediate peril, but I could not shield him from the arm of the law. Yet, forcing him to take responsibility for actions he didn't commit felt profoundly unjust.

After listening, Wang Jue remained silent for a long time, sitting motionless on a rock at the summit. Facing the wind, he closed his eyes, spreading his arms slightly, as if trying to capture the voice of the breeze. After a moment, he opened his eyes, a faint smile touching his lips, and looked at me, saying, "I can hear the police sirens!"

We were on the mountaintop, at least three or four kilometers from the main road outside the village. Not only was it impossible to hear sirens beyond the village, but even a string of firecrackers detonated within the village itself might not reach us up here. I stood beside Wang Jue, straining my ears for a full minute, but heard nothing save the rustling of the wind. So, I teased him, "Have you developed super hearing? I can't make out a thing."

"I’m telling you, I can hear them. Each engine has a distinct sound—there are five vehicles. They’ve reached the village outskirts. Some have already gone to the ancestral hall, securing the scene. They don't know who committed this atrocity, and they are currently clearing the area, collecting evidence," Wang Jue stated seriously, his expression completely devoid of humor.