Chapter 3: Shadows
I did not speak again, and with a grim expression, I placed the backpack on the ground
Zhou Yan did not think much about it, nodded slightly, and walked over to open the living room window
But this cannot be stated outright, can I tell Zhang Liguo that I am a corpse transporter? His next action would probably be to raise his hand and hit me
This yellow paper is not like the ordinary small yellow paper used by Taoist priests for drawing talismans; rather, it is quite large, approximately one square meter when unfolded.
I suspect this fellow doesn't have much confidence in me either. Hearing is one thing, seeing is believing. After all, he has never seen me take action, so it is only natural for him to lack confidence in me. Otherwise, how could he say such a thing
The residence of the deceased, Luo Dahai, is located in Room 1802 on the eighteenth floor. Since the police cordoned off the area with yellow tape, hardly anyone has dared to come near this place.
I saw a glass on the table meant for drinking water, so I reached out and took it. Then, I lit a stick of incense I had brought and quietly placed it into the glass.
Although my academic performance at school is not particularly good, with scores of around thirty in both English and Mathematics, I surprisingly learn these enigmatic subjects quite quickly
As we approached the police car, the officer standing outside immediately became alert, turning to scrutinize us for a moment. One of the middle-aged officers strode towards us.
Zhou Yan politely called out "Uncle Zhang," and introduced me by saying: "This is Yi Lin, my university classmate"
"Xiao Zhou, who is this young man?" The middle-aged police officer's smile is very approachable, yet it conveys an air of authority without anger.
I wrinkled my nose and took a sniff, gradually recalling the things that the old man had taught me
Zhang Liguo asked in confusion: "What do you mean by the question you asked me earlier? Is there anyone guarding the scene? Why do you care about this?"
I truly understand them; if it weren't for the old gentleman, perhaps I would also be like them, upholding the so-called science and casting traditional superstitious culture into the corner.
The gathering of negative energy is the domain of malevolent spirits; ordinary souls disperse negative energy rather than concentrate it. Only malevolent spirits possess the ability to accumulate negative energy within their bodies, and there is nothing else that can do so
The benevolent see benevolence, and the wise see wisdom. After all, metaphysics is somewhat illusory, and it is quite normal for few to believe in it; I truly understand this.
Those who are killed by malevolent spirits will have a foul odor emanating from their corpses, and this stench will continuously spread outward, achieving the effect of lingering for three days as recorded.
Hello, Uncle Zhang. I also called out.
Evil spirits wreak havoc in the mortal realm, and those who are harmed by them will carry a lingering scent of death on their bodies. This odor is difficult to dissipate, lingering for three days without fading away
Real-life demons are completely different from the demons depicted in novels or movies
I smiled; it seems that the police are quite adept at covering up these unsavory matters
Do you know how the deceased died? I paid no attention to his jesting and asked them a question of my own.
Zhou Yan gave me a glance, signaling me not to speak carelessly, and then led me towards the two police cars
With a snap, Zhang Liguo turned on the light in the living room and gently closed the door behind him
Are the skills passed down by our ancestors over thousands of years merely superstition? Or are the clearly documented tales of gods and spirits in ancient texts just stories?
"Open the window and let this smell dissipate." I buried my head and continued rummaging through my backpack, calling out to Zhou Yan.
"Sir," I replied, "the Yin-Yang Master is a Taoist, and the Corpse Driver is a corpse handler; I belong to the latter.
Upon hearing this, Zhou Yan and Zhang Liguo both nodded, clearly understanding the meaning of my words, as the smell of decay is easily distinguishable from the odors we are familiar with
The aroma of the incense is quite strong. After lighting this stick of incense, it didn't take long for the unpleasant smell in the room to gradually dissipate. I estimate that after a while, this odor will essentially be replaced by the fragrance of the incense.
The sound insulation here is quite good, don't worry, Uncle Zhang. Zhou Yan comforted, peering into the pitch-black room before us, and quietly said to me: "You lead the way, we will just follow and watch."
Zhang Liguo looked around and noticed that the corridor was very quiet, which made him breathe a sigh of relief
As soon as I got off the car, I saw two police cars parked in the community, with several police officers standing outside chatting, occasionally glancing up at the building, though I could not tell what they were looking at
Zhou Yan looked around and leaned close to Zhang Liguo's ear, whispering: "Isn't Luo Dahai's body too heavy to move? My classmate can help us move it!"
Perhaps influenced by him, I have loved reading those mysterious and supernatural books since childhood
The elevator door chimed, and we stepped out quietly, looking nothing like good citizens; rather, we resembled intruders.
After the possession, the evil spirit will directly control a person's body to harm the living
Zhang Liguo furrowed his brows as he looked at me, his tone becoming somewhat colder: "What are you doing?"
"Do you know how he died?" Zhou Yan asked me
The old gentleman is an avid reader, encompassing a wide range of interests from Daoist classics to ancient metaphysical legends. He has collected numerous ancient texts in this domain from various sources, which are stored in the back room of the flower shop.
The Dongfeng Community is indeed one of the notable luxury residences in Guiyang, where the residents are either wealthy or of high status. In 2007, having a residential building with twenty-eight floors was already considered quite extravagant. It seems that Luo Dahai's background is also not ordinary; otherwise, with his white-collar salary, dreaming of buying a house here would be unrealistic
The smell of a corpse is somewhat akin to the foul odor of decaying animals, but it is even more pungent and difficult to bear. Generally, those who encounter the smell of a corpse for the first time are likely to vomit
The nearby residents are also feeling uncertain; no one dares to go out at night. This is one of the reasons why our activities at night go unnoticed by outsiders
Half an hour later, the taxi stopped outside Dongfeng Community
Ancient people were not fools; if these things truly did not exist, how could they possibly believe in them
Although my work may seem somewhat like performing a shamanistic ritual, I assure you that I possess genuine skills and abilities
Feeling Zhang Liguo's gaze becoming increasingly sharp, I began to sweat on my forehead. This uncle wouldn't think I came here to perform some kind of supernatural act, would he
To cause mischief here means to cause mischief in this place or in the earthly realm
The odor we previously detected was not pungent; it was merely unpleasant and not fishy, making it easy to distinguish.
As I spoke, I tore the yellow paper in half: "The smell we detected earlier is not the odor of a corpse"
"Evil spirits are upon me," I replied, burying my head as I took out the yellow paper from my backpack and laid it flat on the floor.
At first, I felt somewhat uncertain, after all, engaging in superstitious activities in front of the people's police... indeed seemed a bit unreliable
Upon hearing this, Zhang Liguo furrowed his brows, and his gaze immediately turned to me
With a sense of hope against hope, I carefully examined the thickness of the door and the position of the windows in the room, feeling a quiet sense of relief in my heart
Although the records of Yin Zhan in the book consist of only a few short lines, these few lines are sufficient to clarify the causes and consequences of the emergence of Yin Zhan
At that moment, a name suddenly appeared in my mind, and when I recalled this name, my scalp felt as if it had exploded.
Especially the ancient texts that I browse through when I am bored, they leave a particularly deep impression on me. At the very least, remembering these things is much more impressive than memorizing texts in school.
hetushu.com has not been touched for several years, and tonight there must be no accidents; otherwise, this person could face serious consequences
Do not shoot, enter the village quietly. This famous saying has been fully embodied by the three of us.
They will not call you like Sadako, nor will they crawl out of the television, much less strangle you face to face or cut open your abdomen to play with your intestines
The victim's body has signs of trauma, this statement is of utmost importance
"That is the shadowy place." As I spoke the words 'shadowy place', my expression darkened once again.
Compared to the Yin-Yang Master, the corpse driver indeed lacks much persuasive power
There are only two ways in which real evil spirits harm people: one is by creating illusions that frighten individuals to death, and the second is the situation encountered by Luo Dahai, which is a direct assault
In my memory, there is a book in those ancient texts that seems to be called "Records of the Cloud's Misfortunes," written by a Taoist known as Yunyoutzi during the Song Dynasty, which contains accounts of the Yin Zhan.
Zhang Liguo looked at me with a gaze reminiscent of a charlatan, carrying a hint of jest: "Why are you burning incense? Are you going to perform a ritual?"
But now it is different; I am quite confident, and with no one watching upstairs, this is my great opportunity
The entire sentence translates to
"Why is this smell so strong?" Zhang Liguo furrowed his brows and looked around, "The smell wasn't this intense yesterday."
Hearing my vague response, Zhang Liguo probably took me for a Taoist. He did not make any other movements, just furrowed his brows and said, "Xiao Zhou generally does not engage in futile efforts. I will take you all up to have a look."
"Where is the body?" My voice trembled slightly, but Zhou Yan and the others did not pay attention. I pointed to the study on my right and said, "It's lying inside."
The old gentleman once explained the meaning of this sentence to me
I will take you up," Zhang Liguo said, glancing at me before turning around and leading me and Zhou Yan into the residential building
Nearby residents asked, "Is the body still here?" I curiously inquired, to which Zhang Liguo nodded and replied, "Our reason is that we need to maintain the crime scene; the body cannot be moved. This case is quite difficult to solve, and we must wait for professionals to come and examine the scene."
Zhou Yan and Zhang Liguo exchanged a glance, and then turned their gaze towards me, their eyes filled with confusion
This is ... ? ... a peculiar odor of阴殠. ? ! (殠, pronounced chou in the fourth tone, has the same pronunciation as臭, which means foul smell in classical literature, but here it refers to a specific type of阴气 odor.)
The curse of the gathering of shadows wreaks havoc here, leaving the victim's body with lingering shadows, echoing for three days
At this moment, I am also experiencing a bit of a headache, after all, when the time comes to truly showcase my abilities, it is absolutely impossible not to stir things up a bit
The windows all face the back mountain of the community, without facing any other residential buildings directly. Moreover, the thickness of the front door is sufficient, so it is unlikely that any commotion would be noticed.
"Alright, hurry up and go, time is precious." I shrugged my shoulders, not taking their reaction to heart, feeling just a bit helpless.
"Lower your voice, and be sure not to attract the attention of outsiders." Zhang Liguo carefully took out the key and opened the door, still feeling a bit uneasy as he reminded me once more
After Zhang Liguo mentioned it, I realized that there was a strange smell in the room, quite foul, yet not pungent
Could this be the smell of decay? ... It doesn't seem like it ... ... This odor isn't that pungent ... ...
Even with those stories or records, how many people in the twenty-first century truly believe in the existence of ghosts and deities
Zhou Yan patted my shoulder and said, "This matter may not necessarily be resolved by Yi Lin; anyway, it's worth a try. If things do not go well, Uncle Zhang, please do not blame him."
As I comforted myself, I smiled at Zhang Liguo and said, "Uncle Zhang, let's not beat around the bush. The body up there cannot be moved, and you must have noticed some discrepancies as well."
There is no wave without wind