"Heaven’s Defect and Earth’s Absence? The Seven Stars Align?" Old Master Ji pondered for a moment, then suddenly raised his voice to ask me, "Are you certain it was those eight characters: 'Heaven’s Defect and Earth’s Absence,' 'The Seven Stars Align'?"

I nodded, then immediately realized Old Master Ji couldn't see me at all. Except for that "ink wash painting," which seemed distant yet incredibly near, glaring like a wide cinematic screen, the rest was pitch black, only punctuated by the drip-drop sound of water hitting the surface. This entire scene felt like an early, artificially dubbed film.

Old Master Ji hadn't lit a torch or turned on a flashlight; he must have lost them in the chaos.

"It should be those characters," I stated. "I appreciate calligraphy, so I have some understanding of the evolution of Chinese characters. These eight characters resemble the script from the Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods—the Great Seal script. Though the strokes are sweeping and vigorous, they aren't hard to decipher."

Old Master Ji fell silent again, seemingly racking his brain.

Man Niao Niao asked with a trembling voice, "Brother An, tell us, is that really... the Half-Ghoul Fire?" He had a phenomenal memory and never forgot to observe taboos.

I inwardly rolled my eyes as I heard Old Master Ji say, "Didn't I just say that was merely an ordinary natural phenomenon? In June, on a rainy night, you often see so-called ghost fires rising from grave mounds. Ordinary people believe those are lingering souls of the dead, an ominous sign, but it's really nothing of the sort."

"Then... why would the Half-Ghoul Fire appear here, now?" Man Niao Niao remained uneasy.

"Well... I suspect it's like this: that stalagmite pierced a large hole in the mortar pit, causing air convection. The temperature here gradually rose, and since the environment is inherently humid with heavy moisture, the phosphine gas accumulated more and more, eventually igniting..."

"Then... you said you often see Half-Ghoul Fire in grave mounds. Does that mean the opposite side is entirely composed of graves?" Although Man Niao Niao was terrified, his logical thinking hadn't completely dissolved; he asked a question I also wanted answered.

"I think," Old Master Ji said, "if my guess is correct, the opposite side must be a sheer cliff. On that cliff, there are likely ancient rock-cut tombs or cliff-hanging coffins. Those ghost fires are probably generated because the remains haven't completely dissipated..."

"Rock-cut tombs? Cliff-hanging coffins?" I blurted out in surprise.

"Yes. Although most Tujia people today practice earth burial, in earlier times there were various burial methods, among the most famous being rock-cut tombs and cliff-hanging coffins. The Tang Dynasty text Chao Ye Jin Zai describes cliff-hanging burials thus: 'When the parents of the Wuling people die, their corpses are placed outside the village, to be buried after three years. Relatives feast, sing, and dance for over a month until a coffin is fully fashioned from the offspring's essence. They carve a treasure niche halfway up a towering mountain overlooking the river to bury the deceased; the higher the niche, the greater the filial piety. Afterwards, no further sacrifices are made.' 'Wuling' refers to the Wuling Man, an ancient designation for the Tujia people. 'Carving treasure' means artificially chiseling out a rock cavern on the cliff face to hold the coffin. Rock-cut tombs are similar to cliff-hanging coffins. These two burial methods are no longer used by the Tujia people, but ruins of both can be found along the Qingjiang River in Xidu..."

I never expected this Tujia man, Old Master Ji, to know so many obscure anecdotes. Intrigued, I pressed him, "If it's a cliff face, how did the ancestors manage to lift the coffins up there?"

"That... remains unclear to this day; it's an unsolved mystery of humanity. Because the Tujia people didn't have their own writing system and lived long isolated in the deep mountains, there are very few detailed written records, posing a great challenge for historical experts."

"So, you're saying that the place where the ghost fires are must have many artificially carved caverns, and when the ghost fires ignite, they form various lines, ultimately creating this... picture of Xiama Mouth Village?" I continued pressing.

"Logically, that should be the case," Old Master Ji replied. "It's just that we don't know precisely who carved such a strange 'picture' in Anle Cave, or why they did it."

That was indeed the question. The four of us fell silent again, our minds constantly picturing the ancient scene of people burying their elders on a cliff face.

Amidst the drip-drop, those eight great characters, the "ink wash painting" of Xiama Mouth Village, slowly drifted before our eyes, silently narrating a distant history long since covered in dust...

After a long silence, Old Master Ji suddenly spoke, "Ying Ying, did you find that token stele?"

I was startled, then remembered the token stele clutched in my hand. "Yes. The giant python spat it out!" I reached out, found Old Master Ji's hand, and placed the token stele in his grasp.

"It is indeed similar to the token stele, just much smaller, and it feels like it has many patterns etched on it. Too bad we lost the torch and flashlight... This means the strange dream we both had on the sixth day of the sixth lunar month truly has deeper meaning..." Old Master Ji paused for a long moment before speaking.

This was indeed another perplexing issue. We entered Anle Cave precisely because of the token stele that appeared in our dream and was found in reality. Judging by the sequence of events, our journey into Anle Cave seemed predestined by fate. So, what purpose does this token stele serve? Why was it hidden inside the giant python in Anle Cave? What connection does it have to the ghost-fire painting of Xiama Mouth Village before us? And what connection does it have to Qin Bing'er?

"My dear, my dear, my dear, I miss you..." The jarring ring of a cell phone in the tranquil environment made the four people and one dog jump up in the darkness, their stomping causing pebbles to clatter loudly.

I was ecstatic. I pulled out my phone and held it to my ear, thinking perhaps my parents, noticing our long absence, were calling to check on us.

"Hello?"

"..." Only static crackled from the phone; no voice replied.

"Hello? Who is this?" I shouted again.

"..."

"Hello? Hello? Is this Mom?"

...

After I called out several times, the phone only emitted crackling sounds. Qin Bing'er reached for my arm and whispered, her voice trembling, "Ying Ying... there's a 'Half-Ghoul'!"

Huh? I froze, then instantly realized it, and a cold sweat instantly broke out. My hand holding the phone shook so violently I almost dropped it—how could there be cell service in such a sealed underground area? Besides, hadn't my phone been forced off back at the Lacquer Pond?

No one spoke; the breathing of the four of us grew heavier. I brought the phone closer to my eyes and felt moisture seeping from the keypad in the darkness... Heavens, this phone was truly haunted!!

My legs weakened, and I held the phone like a live grenade with the pin pulled. Just as I was about to fling it away, the phone's small screen suddenly lit up, an explosion of pale white halo blooming on the inky, shallow expanse.

My hand recoiled as if scalded by flint, and the phone instantly dropped onto the pile of pebbles. Man Niao Niao had already leaped into the water, splashing frantically. I pulled up Qin Bing'er and tried to flee the shallow area too, but a familiar sigh from the phone rooted me to the spot, "Sigh—!" The voice was still mournful and exquisite, sounding exceptionally distant and ethereal in the black, vast environment.

"Sigh—! You finally came!" The voice from the phone was seductive and eerie, clear yet ethereal.

I was shocked and utterly bewildered. What did "You finally came" mean? Did this spirit, whose voice I heard but whose body I couldn't see, know I was coming all along?

Shielding Qin Bing'er, I forced myself to turn and stare at the still-lit phone lying among the pebbles. My lips moved, "Who... who are you? Are you human or... a ghost?" My voice trembled like a rubber band suddenly snapped.

"Sigh! You don't remember me? Sigh! You never took me to heart; I never entered your soul..." The female voice from the phone replied sinisterly. "Who... who exactly are you?" I suddenly raised my voice. Judging by her tone, perhaps some colleague was playing a joke on me? Of course, I knew that was impossible, but when people are extremely terrified, they always seek the rationale that best reinforces their psychological defenses.

"Sigh—! You really don't remember me... Your heart is so cruel!" The female voice on the phone sighed three times in one sentence. "I gave you everything, and you... you still won't keep me in your heart..."

"I..." I truly couldn't find the right words to describe my current state of mind; my brain was becoming increasingly chaotic.

"I waited for you for over two thousand years, and what I waited for was an even crueler you..."

"Who... who are you? Where are you?" Waited for me for over two thousand years? Nonsense!

"I am right here; I have always been right here..."

The voice floated lightly from the phone, exerting a powerful enchantment on me. Mechanically, I crouched down, took a deep breath, and forced my eyes wide open, leaning close to the phone lying on the ground. The moment I saw the screen, my legs gave way, and I collapsed onto the ground—within the small square inch of the screen, the pitiful, sorrowful face of a strange woman was fixed on me, two lines of clear tears streaming down her face, her eyes holding a trace of resentment.

—It was that woman!

—The young woman I saw naked near the stone cave!!

The woman wore a peculiar crown heavily adorned with silver ornaments. Her hair was swept back behind her ears; her cheeks were full and pale, and her lips were dark red and rounded.

"It's you?"

"It's me!—You remember me?" The woman's lips twitched in a half-smile, but her voice conveyed surprise.

"Who... who are you?" Although this was the second time I had met her, this woman was absolutely strange; I had never seen her before. Moreover, she claimed to have waited for me for over two thousand years; how could I possibly have any connection with her?

The woman's expression instantly dimmed, and she let out a long sigh, "Sigh! You are so cruel... I gave you everything... I gave you everything you wanted... I even betrayed my own people... and you still won't have me... You are so cruel... Wuwu..." The woman rambled on and then began to weep sorrowfully, her voice so weak and wronged it was heartbreaking.

"You... did you mistake me for someone else?" In my life, I never feared a woman's coyness or laughter, but I dreaded a woman's tears and tantrums the most. Hearing her cry so heartbrokenly now, my heart had already softened completely, and I didn't even realize she might be the legendary "Half-Ghoul."

"Mistake you for someone else? Hahahaha!" The woman suddenly lifted her head, her voice piercing like a torn silk ribbon. "You don't know who you are, and you won't even admit who you are?"

"I... I... Who am I?" Hearing the certainty in the woman's voice and the madness in her expression, I myself became confused. Who exactly was I?

"You are... a heartless man with a will of stone... Haha... I knew it long ago..." Tears streamed down the woman's face, but her smile was cold and frightening. Her sharp voice squeezed out the sound of dripping water, silencing its once crisp resonance.

"Didn't you just want your Blood Soul Stele back?" The woman continued to laugh madly. "It won't be that easy..."

Hearing the words "Blood Soul Stele" suddenly, I grew even more bewildered. "What... what 'Blood Soul Stele'?"

"Hmph! Indeed, a duplicitous person," the woman on the phone screen spoke as if we were just chatting casually. "You already took it back, and you're still pretending... Truly a duplicitous person..."

"Are you referring to the token stele the giant python spat out?"

"What giant python? What token stele? You're such a good actor. You clearly sent Fierce Dragon to steal the Blood Soul Stele, and now you pretend ignorance... Do you think I'm so easily fooled? I'll trap it here; even if it stole the Blood Soul Stele, it can't get a step away from me..."

Fierce Dragon? That giant python was certainly no simple creature!

"I truly don't know who I am... No, I am just an ordinary Tujia man named Man Ying Ying. I don't know what connection I have with you, and this is the first time I've heard the name Blood Soul Stele. I entered Anle Cave for a friend; she... encountered some inexplicable things. We stumbled into your manor entirely by accident. If we have offended you, Elder, please forgive our rudeness. If your household lets us out of the cave, we will certainly burn more spirit money for you Elder..." By now, I was completely convinced I had encountered a ghost.

"Elder? Heh heh heh, you call me Elder?" The woman laughed even more sorrowfully. "You forgot, you forgot everything. Even the way you address me has changed—I've become an 'Elder'? You don't even dare speak your real name anymore, hmph hmph..."

I quietly pinched Qin Bing'er, stood up, took her hand, and tried to turn back toward the water to escape the shallow area. This woman was speaking nonsense, insisting I was someone of hers, claiming to have waited two thousand years for me. If she wasn't a "Half-Ghoul," she was a demoness. It was best to flee quickly; if I angered her Elder, she might conjure up some terrifying "Rigu Zi" and then escape would be impossible.

The woman in the phone seemed to read my mind. "Trying to leave? Can you leave?... You don't even want to hear my voice anymore?... You don't want to hear why you've encountered so much hardship in Anle Cave?"

That last sentence nailed me in place. I gritted my teeth. Damn it all, why should a living person be afraid of a ghost? If you have the nerve, take a bite out of me. I wanted to hear what nonsense she could spew next.

"Speak!" I ground out the word between my teeth.

"... Heh heh, that's your character." The woman gave a cold laugh. "You are indeed clever, guessing that 'Mo Yu' and 'Di Gu Niu' meant 'Mo Liu, Tui' (Stay, Retreat). You even dared to crawl into the skin shed by Fierce Dragon. I manipulated Monkey Head Eagle into taking one of you to the Yin-Yang Tree. My original intent was to leave you all a way out. Heh heh, who knew your fear of snakes hadn't healed, and you actually fell into the Lacquer Pond..."

"Wait!" I shouted loudly. "Are those two trees really called the 'Yin-Yang Tree'?"

"Of course."

"Why?"

"Because... I hate you! I want to cling to you, to strangle you to death..."

"You hate me? Even if I am your... someone, based on the situation with the Yin-Yang Tree, shouldn't I be the one hating you?" I recalled Old Master Ji saying the Yin-Yang Tree implied 'hating a wife,' and I truly was unwilling to tell a female Half-Ghoul that I was her 'husband.'

"Hmph hmph... It seems you've forgotten everything!" The woman changed the subject. "Do you know why you successfully escaped the four deadly traps of Life, Poison, Soul, and Death? That's because... you cried four times in the cave, and not only that... you also sang those love songs that broke my heart. You must know, I was captivated by your singing back then. Your four cries, combined with those love songs, inadvertently broke my curse. Plus Fierce Dragon's help, you were lucky enough to arrive here."

Cried four times? True or false? I carefully recalled: once after Man Niao Niao fell off the cliff, once after Qin Bing'er was snatched by Monkey Head Eagle, once when Hua'er was caught in a rock crevice, and once when Man Niao Niao was coiled by the giant python in the 'mortar pit'—it was indeed four times. As for Old Master Ji singing love songs in the cave, it was entirely to dispel the fear in the hearts of the three young men, yet it unexpectedly became the key to breaking the curse... Fate, oh fate!!

"Then..." I actually had many more questions, but recalling the incident where Man Niao Niao harassed me was the most unforgettable. Seeing that the woman was stuck in the phone and didn't come out, and her tone had gradually become gentler, I sat down on the ground and asked, "Why did I see a stone cave, while Old Master Ji saw something different?"

"Hahahaha... Isn't that the thing you enjoy doing the most?" The woman laughed uninhibitedly. "I just wanted to see if you would still be attracted to me when you came to find me... Indeed, your fundamental nature hasn't changed; you still like... like..." The woman couldn't finish her sentence.

Even ghosts get shy? An unprecedented wonder!!

Qin Bing'er's hand trembled lightly, seeming to become bashful. Without looking, I knew her face must be flushed crimson down to her neck.

In the darkness, a large hand reached out, found mine, and led it to touch someone lying on the ground. I touched a body with a violently rising chest that made no sound. I realized Old Master Ji must have dragged the unconscious Man Niao Niao onto the shallow bank. This reminded me of the old man with the white beard. "Did you arrange for the white-bearded old man in the 'Ka Men' as well?"

"What white-bearded old man?" The woman's tone suggested she had absolutely no knowledge of the matter.

"..." I was speechless. I hadn't seen the so-called white-bearded old man and couldn't describe him. "Did you set up all those 'traps'? What about Ah Kebei's tomb? And the Cloud Demon on Tianjiao Mountain, and you with that man in the stone cave..."

"... What can be seen is not necessarily the truth, and what cannot be seen does not necessarily not exist... I told you this long ago."

Judging by the woman's words, were everything we saw illusions? This was somewhat in line with my own suspicions.

Old Master Ji gently nudged me and dragged my hand toward the "ink wash painting" formed by the ghost fires. I understood his intent and asked the woman on the phone, "What is the deal with that ghost-fire painting? Why Xiama Mouth Village?"

"Xiama Mouth? Interesting, interesting... This name is very well chosen." The woman murmured to herself. "The Xiama Mouth you speak of is inherently a Feng Shui formation that has existed for a long time. I named it 'Heaven’s Defect and Earth’s Absence' and 'The Seven Stars Align.' 'Heaven’s Defect and Earth’s Absence' refers to the underground situation; Anle Cave is merely a tiny, 'flawed' example. 'The Seven Stars Align' refers to the seven hillocks near Xiama Mouth Village that you mentioned aligning into a line; this is the most powerful focal point of the entire Feng Shui formation. Of course, I had people arrange the layout of Anle Cave, and the rock caverns on the cliff face where you saw the ghost fires were also chiseled by my clansmen; they buried your clansmen..."

So that's how it was. "...What is the Blood Soul Stele?" After a long silence, I changed the topic.

"You forgot? The Blood Soul Stele is the only thing you ever gave me!" The woman's voice suddenly became filled with intense resentment when I asked about it. "Not only did you send Fierce Dragon to steal it, but you ran over yourself to grab it? Hmph hmph..."

I grew anxious. Who exactly was the "I" the woman was referring to? How could there be such a complicated entanglement of emotions with this woman? Is there truly such a thing as 'reincarnation after death' or 'lingering spirits'? If so, I would be generations removed from that "me" of over two thousand years ago, so why did this woman from two millennia ago keep calling me "you"?

I was about to ask more when the woman cut me off, saying, "So what if you stole the Blood Soul Stele? If you can't unlock the poetry lock, you will have to stay here with me forever..."