Returning home, my parents were naturally pacing frantically, arguing with Old Man Wen Shu who was preparing to enter Anle Cave to look for us. The sudden sight of the four of us and the dog trailing back like beggars asking for alms brought them both surprise and relief. Old Man Wen Shu looked at the four of us who were in a sorry state, and the "Po Xi Gang" [Broken Slag Jar] started to exert its influence: "Eh? Two full days and nights in the cave, and you come out looking like this?"

I collapsed into a chair and told my mother, "Mom, first get us some food. We can talk about the rest later..." My mother snapped back to reality and hurried off to the kitchen to start cooking. During this lull, the four of us summoned the energy to wash up, change clothes, and tidy ourselves. What followed, naturally, was a hearty feast of "wine passing through the intestines and meat nourishing the flesh"—no need for further elaboration.

With my body warmed and my stomach full, I felt as though I had been granted a second life.

After downing three cups of "horse piss" [rough liquor], Old Man Wen Shu was already impatient, pressing Ji Ye for details about our time in the cave. Seeing Ji Ye looking drowsy, I said to Old Man Wen Shu and Man Niao Niao, "How about this: I appoint Uncle Niao as the spokesperson. Can he 'lay it out' in detail for you folks? ... Anyway, he slept more soundly than the rest of us in the cave; he's full of energy, and he gets along well with you. Uncle Niao, you must obey the leadership, fully utilize your strengths and initiative, and successfully complete this glorious mission! ... The rest of us are going to catch up on some sleep first."

Even the slow-witted Man Niao Niao understood the meaning behind my words. He shot me a fierce glare, then turned around, clinking glasses with his old man while diligently taking on the responsibilities of spokesperson...

The other three members of the "Gang of Four" quickly beat it, each heading to their rooms to nap.

My eyelids were heavy and my head felt stuffy. I expected to be sawing logs the moment I hit the pillow, but to my surprise, I tossed and turned on the ** like a pig being scalded for slaughter, unable to find real rest. I finally pulled out the Blood Soul Stele I had obtained through such hardship to examine it closely.

Only now did I have the time and energy to clearly see this Blood Soul Stele that had appeared in my dream and which we had obtained in Anle Cave.

The Blood Soul Stele was about eight inches long, five inches wide, and one inch thick—its proportions closely resembling the common local tally stone plaques. It was pitch black all over, radiating a soft, cool glow; the top featured the distinctive arc of a tally stone, making the entire shape resemble half of a stadium's oval track.

The material of the Blood Soul Stele was very strange. To call it black jade, yet it lacked the gentle smoothness of jade when touched; to call it stone, yet it wasn't heavy in my hand; to call it some sort of metal, yet when I tapped it against the edge of the bed, it didn't produce the characteristic clang of gold, silver, copper, or iron... In short, it was a substance I had never encountered before. The stele body had been washed clean and carried no odor whatsoever.

The surface of the Blood Soul Stele was smooth and level, and when I ran my hand over it, I could clearly feel fine, dense patterns.

Holding the Blood Soul Stele up to the light filtering through the skylight tiles, I examined it closely and discovered that both sides of the stele bore delicate and intricate patterns, one side carved in relief (positive carving) and the other in intaglio (negative carving). Following the traditional rules for inscribing text on tally stone plaques, the intaglio side should be the front, meaning the relief-carved side was naturally the back.

The pattern on the front depicted seven or eight crudely rendered figures standing behind a man whose lines were finely and clearly delineated. They watched as the man raised his hands and hurled sword-like objects toward a slightly distant area that seemed to have stone holes. Five or six sword hilts protruded from the holes, with one at the mouth of a hole poised in mid-flight, seemingly about to strike its mark precisely. The man was tall and imposing; only his profile was visible, and his expression seemed to carry a sense of elation and secret satisfaction. On the ground outside the stone holes lay a large pile of similar sword shafts, which corresponded with the chest-beating, foot-stamping demeanor of the group behind the man.

Looking at the scene in this pattern, I muttered to myself whether these people were playing a game of "pitch-pot and shooting."

It was unclear who created this pattern, but the carver had clearly intended to highlight the man's image, not only outlining the lines of his body with exquisite detail but also vividly carving his facial expression and actions in a way that was exaggerated yet spirited. In contrast, the group behind the man, serving as supporting characters, had their body lines rendered much more roughly and casually—some thick, some thin, some long, some short; their outlines were merely suggestive. One or two were even just stick figures: a circle supported by five short lines, making it impossible to discern their gender.

The positive-carved pattern on the back was even stranger. In a river of churning waves, the imposing man from the front pattern stood upright on a rectangular object that was neither quite a boat nor quite a raft, nor quite an island, seemingly laughing heartily. Around the rectangular object, seven or eight figures with vague outlines were half-submerged in the river, flailing their arms and legs as if struggling and crying for help... Similar to the front pattern, the lines depicting the tall, powerful man were equally fine and delicate, his expression rich and exaggerated.

Both patterns were positioned near the curved end of the stele, occupying only about half of the stele's surface area. Although the man's physique, posture, and expression were rendered with such fine detail, neither pattern showed the man's complete frontal face, so I couldn't describe his specific features, only intuit the richness of his expressions.

I recalled the eerie woman calling this artifact the "Blood Soul Stele." I had expected to find the words "Blood Soul Stele" etched on its surface, but after searching up and down, I found no writing whatsoever, not even pictograms. However, I unexpectedly discovered two rectangular indentations embedded in the stele's curved top—the sockets were long empty, seemingly designed to hold something.

Apart from the two inscrutable patterns and the two indentations, I found nothing else on the stele body.

I wondered privately: was this unassuming little thing the very tally stone Ji Ye had decided we must find in Anle Cave?

Back then, I had approached Ji Ye, known as a "master," because of the green fur pattern on Tan Ping'er's back. I unexpectedly learned that Ji Ye had also suffered a strange "sleep paralysis" dream on the sixth day of the sixth lunar month. After racking his brain, this "master" concluded that we needed to enter Anle Cave to find the tally stone from the dream. At the time, I felt this was absurd—what sane person would spend time and energy searching for something that appeared only in a "dream"? However, at that moment, my sole desire was to understand why Tan Ping'er had a green fur pattern on her back and how the character "" (Tǔ) on my forehead related to her. Of course, my biggest hope was finding a way to remove that green fur pattern. I felt it was a great pity for such a bewitchingly beautiful girl like Tan Ping'er to bear such a mysterious, enigmatic pattern; it was like a glaring flaw on a piece of warm, lustrous jade that made one uneasy. Thus, I acted rashly on impulse, steeling my heart, and resolutely followed Ji Ye into Anle Cave. Subsequent events proved that the strange "sleep paralysis" dream on the sixth day of the sixth month was no mere "dream." Not only did the green fur pattern on Tan Ping'er’s back vanish—indirectly proving the pattern was the clue to finding the tally stone—but after enduring numerous hardships, we indeed found the tally stone that appeared in the dream, and we found it in the mouth of the giant python that had also been in the dream. Of course, at that time, we didn't know this tally stone was called the "Blood Soul Stele."

And I only learned the name "Blood Soul Stele" from the "Yin Spirit" who was the "me" from over two thousand years ago.

Even now, I still struggle to believe that I actually held a conversation with a legendary "Yin Spirit." If "ghost talk" were to be believed, the woman clearly believed I was the one who deceived and hurt her feelings, the one who took everything from her, even her life; the one she loved deeply yet hated to the bone.

Who exactly was this person?

I suddenly remembered Old Man Wen Shu mentioning "Lin Jun" before we entered the cave. So far, the strange dream contained tangible realities: my deceased grandfather, the giant python, the yellow-clothed girl, and the tally stone. The only element that lacked any real-world basis was the "White Tiger," which is the legendary incarnation of Ba Wu Xiang, the ancestor of the Tujia people, after his death. It was precisely because Old Man Wen Shu stirred up trouble, linking that strange dream to the mystical, declaring that searching for the tally stone must be the "dying wish" left for me and Ji Ye by the ancestor of the Tujia people, Lord Ba Wu Xiang, that I rashly entered Anle Cave, holding onto my personal agenda while being skeptical.

Later, at the Yin-Yang Tree, Ji Ye explained its origin was due to an intricate, unending entanglement between Lord Lin Jun Ba Wu Xiang and a certain woman during his lifetime. Ji Ye guessed that Lin Jun had used the Yin-Yang Tree to subtly imply "hatred for his wife," but when I spoke with the female "Yin Spirit," she also admitted the meaning of the Yin-Yang Tree, though she claimed it was her curse upon Lin Jun. Regardless of who cursed whom, the Yin-Yang Tree was certainly connected to Lin Jun. Furthermore, calculating the timeline, over two thousand years ago corresponds to the period between the Eastern Zhou and Western Han dynasties, which is exactly when the Ba State existed, and when Lin Jun lived.

This suggests that the man entangled with the female "Yin Spirit" should be Lord Lin Jun.

But why did the female "Yin Spirit" say that I was the one she had waited for for over two thousand years? Why did she say I was the one who deceived her feelings and took everything, even her life? Why did she say the "Blood Soul Stele" was the only thing I gave her? Could it be that I, a modern person living in the twenty-first century, am the reincarnation of the spirit of old Lord Lin Jun Ba Wu Xiang? If that were true, then the man in the stone carving who looked so much like me must indeed be Lin Jun!—Heavens, this is... truly bizarre!

Then, is the tall, imposing man in the two patterns on the Blood Soul Stele also Lin Jun?

I suddenly recalled the four lines of verse Master Qing He told Tan Ping'er: "The person is an old acquaintance; the old acquaintance is not a person. If one is an old acquaintance, they must be the acquaintance's acquaintance." Could the "old acquaintance" in the verse not refer to me being Tan Ping'er's old acquaintance, but rather that the woman from two thousand years ago is my old acquaintance? Or perhaps the Tujia ancestor Lin Jun is Tan Ping'er's old acquaintance? If so, the first two lines of the verse are easily explained. Whether Lin Jun or that woman, they certainly aren't living people; the line "the old acquaintance is not a person" fits perfectly.

Of course, there is another reason why I suspected Lin Jun might be Tan Ping'er's "old acquaintance." If the man in the stone carving was indeed Lin Jun, the inscription on his forehead—which I couldn't see clearly—seemed to confirm the mystery of the "" character. However, I was certain that the writing on that man's forehead was definitely not the character "," which contradicts my theory. Moreover, the female "Yin Spirit" never mentioned any other woman throughout our entire exchange; she only repeatedly insisted that "I" deceived her. Could it be that even my ancestor, old Lord Lin Jun, was not immune to worldly failings? Did he cheat? Was there a mistress while the main wife at home remained ignorant?

—This matter might not be as simple as I imagine!

Lying on the ** with the Blood Soul Stele, my mind was a complete mess. The dream from the sixth day of the sixth month, the soul-stealing "Sha" [malevolent energies] in Anle Cave, Tan Ping'er and the mysterious Master Qing He, the strange woman from two millennia ago, the bizarre ghost-fire painting, the naturally formed Feng Shui pattern of "Incomplete Heaven and Earth, Seven Stars in Alignment" at Xiamakou Village... all these flashed and intermingled in my mind, leaving me dry-mouthed, internally feverish, with cold limbs and a dull ache in my temples.

And still, I couldn't find a single thread of clarity, no reasonable explanation! Nor could I grasp the origin or function of this "Blood Soul Stele." Even more confusing was the inevitable connection between it and me, it and Tan Ping'er, and me and Tan Ping'er!

A sudden thought struck me: since everything originated from that strange "sleep paralysis" dream, if I managed to fall asleep peacefully now, might I have another similar dream? Considering the events themselves, I had already completed the task assigned by my grandfather from the other side, and now I was at a point where the path ahead was obscure. Perhaps my grandfather would give me further explicit direction in a dream?

Having made up my mind, I quieted my breath, cleared my mind of distracting thoughts, and silently repeated, "A calm heart brings coolness," tightly closing my eyes to "seek" a dream...

This maneuver proved effective. When I awoke again, I noticed the light in the room had dimmed slightly; it looked like evening.

My senses were foggy, but I surprisingly remembered to meticulously recall whether I had any strange dreams. After thinking for a while, my mind was completely blank. When I reached out my hand, I found that the Blood Soul Stele, which had been beside my pillow, was gone!

I instantly snapped awake, shooting up from the **. I frantically rummaged under the pillow and in the covers, my eyes darting around the room, but still no trace of the Blood Soul Stele.

I jumped to the floor, not even bothering to put on my shoes, and rushed barefoot outside. To my horror, I saw Ji Ye sitting in a recliner in the bamboo grove, turning the Blood Soul Stele over and over for inspection. A crowd of heads was squeezed around him: Tan Ping'er, Old Man Wen Shu, Hua'er...

I let out a breath of relief, yet felt puzzled—where was that jerk Man Niao Niao? I walked over to the bamboo grove and was startled to find Man Niao Niao leaning against a branch of my family's blood-plum tree, sleeping soundly and charmingly. His huge mouth, which gave me goosebumps whenever I saw it, was wide open to an astonishing degree, and the alcoholic breath he exhaled could blow away dust and scatter stones. A fly, heedless of its life, happily tried to drift into that "pit of slag," but was blown dizzy by the fumes. After tumbling about in a panic for a while, it managed to escape that one-meter radius zone of trouble.

I covered my nose, plucked an unripe blood plum from the tree, and stuffed it into Man Niao Niao's mouth. The sensory shock slightly lessened, and I pulled over a bamboo recliner to sit down comfortably.

"You're awake?" Ji Ye grinned, "When I went in to get the Blood Soul Stele, I saw you sleeping soundly, so I didn't disturb you. Old Man Wen Shu has already emptied out everything I know." I yawned lazily and said, "That nap... felt so good. I feel like I haven't slept this comfortably in ages. Ping'er, did you sleep well?"

"Mm, very well! I haven't had such sweet sleep in a long time either," Tan Ping'er replied.

"Um... is that thing on your back really gone?"

"Yes. Aren't you asking the obvious?" Tan Ping'er blushed slightly, her eyes fluttering, a trace of a smile on her lips, looking at me with playful reproach. My heart skipped a beat—did she already know I had touched her back? It must be that Man Niao Niao's "pit of slag" had fully exercised its initiative; this spokesperson job... he was certainly dedicated!

Seeing Tan Ping'er looking radiant and teasingly smiling, I remembered almost breaching her "citadel" in Anle Cave when I searched for the "poetry" in the "poetry lock," and how I had stealthily kissed her face in the dark. My face began to burn, and feeling a bit guilty, I quickly averted my gaze from her eyes and turned to ask Ji Ye, "How is it? Any discoveries?"

"I discussed it with Old Man Wen Shu. This Blood Soul Stele should belong to the ancestor of the Tujia people, Lord Lin Jun. The man on the stele should be his venerable self."

"Oh?" So, this matched my speculation.

"The two patterns on the stele precisely describe how he became the chieftain..."

"How so?" This was something I hadn't considered—the origins of those two patterns had such a backstory.

"I heard this from the old council as well," Old Man Wen Shu chimed in quickly, as if taking credit. "It is said that Mount Wuluo Zhongli—which is the present-day Jiashan in Hubei—had a Red Cave and a Black Cave, and Lin Jun Ba Wu Xiang was born in the Red Cave. At that time, our Tujia people were called the 'Barbarians of Ba Commandery and Nan Commandery' and originally consisted of five clans: the Ba clan, the Fan clan, the Tan clan, the Xiang clan, and the Zheng clan. The son of the Ba clan, that is, old Lord Ba Wu Xiang, was born in the Red Cave, while the sons of the other four clans were born in the Black Cave. At that time, the tribe had no leader, so the Tujia people devised two methods to elect one. The first method was to have the sons of the five clans throw their precious swords into a rock hole; whoever threw the most swords in would be elected leader. The sons of the other four clans failed to throw any in, but old Lord Ba Wu Xiang succeeded every time. Perhaps the sons of the other four clans were unconvinced, so they devised a second method: each would build a 'Tu Boat' [earthen boat]; whichever boat could float on the water would determine the leader. Again, only old Lord Ba Wu Xiang's Tu Boat could float on the river. Therefore, the Tujia people elected him as their leader... The two patterns on this stele record these two events. That's why your Ji Ye and I concluded this Blood Soul Stele belongs to him..."

"Based only on these two patterns, it's not enough to conclude the Blood Soul Stele belonged to Lin Jun, is it? Perhaps it's a type of merit stele carved by later generations in Lin Jun's honor?" After sufficient sleep, my logical thinking became more organized.

"Of course," Ji Ye said. "There is other corroborating evidence for determining if the Blood Soul Stele belonged to him. Firstly, the female 'Half-Puppet' in Anle Cave... what did you call her?... personally said it was something 'you' gave her. Judging by her tone, you might have a very deep connection with old Lord Lin Jun. Secondly, there are these two flat indentations. If these indentations were merely for securing or placing the Blood Soul Stele, they should be at the bottom of the stele, not the top. That’s why we speculate that something was originally supposed to be in these indentations—two items that perhaps Lin Jun did not give to that woman..."

"I considered that too. The question is, what exactly are those two items? And where have they gone?" I interrupted Ji Ye.