Chapter 1: The Water Ghost Blocks the Road

On the evening of the second day, Hua Qian Gu wrapped herself in a dog-skin cloak, listening to the howling wind and the wails of ghosts outside. She lay wide awake on the bare wooden floor of the empty cabin, her eyes open throughout the night. Her mind was filled with sorrow and confusion about the path ahead. Early the next morning, she bid farewell to the villagers and set off towards Mount Mao.

The child suppressed the urge to vomit, crossed over that head, and ran forward, not caring that he was stepping on a ground littered with severed limbs. Suddenly, his leg was grabbed by a half-severed right hand, its fingers swollen from being submerged in water, decayed and pale, with the stark white bones visible at the end of the arm.

Oh, Xiaogu, don't be anxious. Wait for me to get dressed and tidy up. I will be ready soon, very soon...

Doctor Zhang felt pity for her, having endured so much fear and suffering at such a young age. He had always taken special care of the father and daughter. As a physician, he had held the fates of many in his hands, having been touched by the lives and deaths of countless individuals. His body was imbued with both positive and negative energies, making it so that ordinary spirits dared not provoke him. Holding Hua Qian Gu's hand, he returned to their residence, and along the way, they encountered no trouble.

For a moment, the child stood still, staring at the suddenly motionless head at his feet, his heart nearly leaping out of his throat. Suddenly, the head flipped over, and the child finally saw her face, which had two large, dark holes where her eyes should be, the eyes having been brutally gouged out. One eye was missing entirely, while the other hung half on her face, connected by some blood vessels, nerves, and tissue, swaying back and forth, the pale eyeball spinning rapidly, staring up at him. Her lips appeared as if they had been gnawed to pieces by fish in the river, trembling and incomplete, as if trying to say something to him, yet only producing a creaking sound like wind blowing through a wooden door.

Rather than saying she was walking, it would be more accurate to say she was running, for those things were always following her closely, only daring not to approach too near due to the Buddhist beads. The surroundings were pitch black, with only the lanterns flickering like ghostly flames drifting in the air. The silence of the wilderness was somewhat eerie, as even the sounds of flowing water and chirping insects were absent.

There are no stars in the sky, nor is there a moon; it is as dark as a great abyss, making it difficult for one to distinguish up from down, as if a misstep would lead one to fall in.

The child swung the prayer beads and struck the head, then heard a hissing sound as if raw meat were placed on a scorching iron plate. It took quite a while for the head to finally loosen and fall off. The child turned to run, but suddenly heard a cracking sound, feeling something hard beneath his feet. Looking down, he discovered that he had accidentally stepped on the other eyeball of the female ghost, which had burst, oozing forth a torrent of pus and maggots.

Hua Qian Gu hurriedly ran in and out, boiling water, preparing medicine, applying ointment to Hua Xiu Cai, and wiping sweat. She was unwilling to rest for even a moment, fearing that she would be consumed by anxiety and indulge in wild thoughts

However, when reaching the small stone arch bridge at the village entrance, the child remained foolishly still. A woman holding a paper umbrella stood on the bridge facing her, with dazzling red peach blossoms embroidered on the umbrella's surface, as well as on her white dress. The umbrella was held very low, obscuring her face. It was clearly a hot and oppressive day with not a hint of wind, yet the hem of her dress fluttered up and down vigorously.

In a state of panic, I discovered that the head quickly bounced back towards me, opening its large mouth and biting down on my right calf. The intense pain was accompanied by a bone-chilling cold that instantly spread throughout my limbs and body.

Hua Xiucai invited a wandering monk to exorcise ghosts and alter Hua Qiangu's fate. The monk merely shook his head, giving Hua Qiangu a string of Buddhist beads he had carried for many years, along with a cloak made from the skins of eight black dogs to conceal the unusual fragrance that ordinary people could not detect, but which ghosts could. He advised that she should not go outside after sunset, and thus she lived safely until the age of twelve

Before long, a man with graying hair came out carrying a medicine box, and hurried back with her.

Who is it

"Doctor Zhang, Doctor Zhang, I am Xiao Gu! Please save my father, he is about to die!" cried the anxious child named Xiao Gu.

The child stood there trembling with fear, thinking it was over, having encountered a ghost blocking the way

Her destiny is too light, with an excess of yin energy, marked by the ominous star of solitude, a rarity in a hundred years. At birth, her mother died in childbirth, and an unusual fragrance filled the city. Although it was clearly the season of flourishing spring, in an instant, all the flowers withered. Thus, she was named Hua Qian Gu.

At this moment, everyone in the village was asleep, so quiet that even the sounds of roosters crowing and dogs barking could not be heard. A child was frantically knocking on the door of a pharmacy, yet it seemed as if the entire village was dead in their dreams, showing no response, with not a single light on. The child knocked desperately for quite some time before there was finally a little movement from inside.

We are about to reach the village; once we enter, everything will be fine, the child constantly reminded himself, his face pale, cold sweat dripping down. He freed his right hand to wrap his cloak made of eight black dog skins more tightly around himself, trying to prevent his scent from spreading further.

Hua Xiucai ultimately did not survive until dawn. In his final moments, his greatest concern was what would happen to the young Hua Qiangu after his death. Doctor Zhang comforted him by saying he would adopt and take care of Qiangu, but Hua Xiucai, on one hand, did not want to burden him, and on the other hand, feared that he would not be able to protect Qiangu for long. Therefore, he instructed Hua Qiangu to seek out a master at the legendary Maoshan after his death to learn the arts, assuring her that once she had mastered her skills, she would no longer have to fear the demons.

Suddenly, the lantern in hand, which should have emitted a gentle yellow light, began to eerily change from a bluish hue to red, as if it had been stained with blood. The air was filled with the pungent odor of the river's fishy scent and the metallic smell of blood

Namo Amitabha Buddha... She continued to chant softly, turning her body to try to cross to the other side of the bridge, lowering her head to pretend she did not see her. Yet, she found that in the blink of an eye, she was standing right in front of her again. The delicate white embroidered shoes were covered in mud, and at her feet was a puddle of water, along with various green algae and shells. It was then that she could see clearly that what was on the hem of her skirt was not peach blossoms, but clearly fresh blood splattered on it.

Just now on the bridge there was ... ... no way, father suddenly fell seriously ill ... ... '' Xiao Gu pulled at Doctor Zhang's clothes, hiding behind him, limping as he walked, his body still trembling incessantly. As he slowly approached the small bridge, he peeked out but found that the scattered remains and the eyeballs he had crushed were all gone. It was as if nothing had ever happened. As he slowly approached the small bridge, he peeked out but found that the scattered remains and the eyeballs he had crushed were all gone. It was as if nothing had ever happened.

Hua Qiangu held her father's gradually cold hand, her heart filled with desolation and bleakness. With her father gone and the * book * left behind, what meaning was there in her solitary existence in this world? She longed to cry, yet no tears would come; she was a person born without tears, unable to shed even a single drop no matter how sad or distressed she felt. Hua Xiucai knew that this child would surely face a tumultuous fate in the future, so he had diligently taught her from a young age, urging her to learn independence and strength.

The child forcefully tore the severed arm from his leg and threw it back onto the bridge. Then he turned and ran forward recklessly. His face had already lost all color from fear.

The head of the ball, resembling a scalp, zigzagged left and right in an S-shape, bouncing off the bridge railing and rebounding back. In a moment, it brushed against the child's feet, startling her so much that she nearly collapsed onto the ground.

Why are you out alone at night? You haven't encountered anything, have you

Doctor Zhang helped her treat the injury on her leg, squeezing out the dark pus and blood, washing it with fragrant ash water, applying some glutinous rice, and bandaging it up. It was merely a bit of corpse poison, and it was not serious.

Hua Xiucai is seriously ill, having lived with Hua Qiangu for a long time, and it is inevitable that he has been plagued by various malevolent energies. At not yet forty years of age, he appears aged and frail, like someone in their fifties or sixties. Doctor Zhang shakes his head repeatedly, sighing, fearing that he may not survive the night.

The next day, Dr. Zhang and several kind-hearted villagers helped her arrange a simple funeral. Dr. Zhang believed that she was still too young to venture out on her own and hoped to adopt her, at least to help her recover from the injury on her leg. However, she was determined to set off immediately, obeying her father's wishes to go to Maoshan to learn the way. Unable to persuade her otherwise, Dr. Zhang had no choice but to help her sell off the valuable items in her home and then provided her with some silver coins.

With a loud crash, the female ghost before me shattered into pieces, her limbs severed into countless segments, as if she had been brutally chopped apart, leaving a ground covered in blood and maggots

The father is a scholar who has failed the imperial examinations multiple times. Due to his resilience, he has managed to raise her until now. However, because Hua Qiangu's constitution easily attracts ghosts and spirits, she has caused quite a bit of trouble for the village. Thus, they have no choice but to live in a makeshift wooden house by a small river on the outskirts of the village.

Suddenly, a round object rolled out from under the umbrella, entangled in long black hair; it was the woman's head. The child felt as if frozen, unable to move at all. A voice kept shouting in the depths of their heart, Run, run, but they could not budge an inch.

Namo Amitabha Buddha ... ... With a stiff upper lip, I raised the prayer beads in front of me. The female ghost stepped back two paces, while the child advanced two paces. As we approached the bridge, a chilling laughter suddenly echoed.

The child, retching and fleeing as if flying off the bridge, discovered that the hand was still gripping his leg, while the head continued to bounce on the bridge, its upper and lower teeth clashing against each other, crying out "Hand, Hand, Hand..." The sound was both mournful and terrifying, yet it could not descend from the bridge, unable to pursue. Those who perished tragically in the water found their souls forever trapped there.

The child was so frightened that he almost dropped the Buddhist beads and lantern in his hands and ran back, his legs trembling uncontrollably

Namo Amitabha Buddha, Namo Amitabha Buddha... A child, approximately twelve or thirteen years old, was walking hurriedly alone on the road. In his right hand, he held a small string of prayer beads, softly reciting, while in his left hand, he carried an oilskin lantern