Mu Haotian looked at Xiuniang's frosty white and beautiful face, and suddenly an indescribable feeling of terror arose in his heart.
This emotion was not that he felt afraid, but that he suddenly had a strong premonition:
A truth too terrible to imagine is hidden in the encounter between these two people!
"Don't be afraid, I'm here. Speak slowly."
The young man's lips moved with a convincing aura.
Xiu Niang calmed down quickly, looked at each other with the woodcutter, and slowly talked about today's events.
The two of them turned out to be a farmer couple from Xiaowang Village at the foot of Laotuo Mountain. They relied on woodcutter to collect firewood in the mountain to make a living.
Laotuo Mountain Forest is deep and foggy, with many wild animals, and the people in the mountains are superstitious and strange. Therefore, the woodcutter always leaves in the morning and returns in the afternoon and never dares to go deep.
Unexpectedly, I went out as usual this morning and still didn't return it until evening.
Recently, there have been many rumors about "ghost children" in the countryside. Seeing that the sky is getting darker and darker, Xiu Niang is getting more and more panicked. She has visited her neighbors, but no one dares to go up the mountain at night.
In the past, Xiuniang also went into the mountains with her husband to help collect firewood. She gritted her teeth immediately, settled down her three children, and before dusk was over, she took a lantern and made a fire, picked up a kitchen knife, and went into the mountains alone.
She called her husband's name as she climbed along the path formed by the firewood collectors dragging bamboo logs over the years.
She didn't know how long she had walked, but she felt that the total distance she had traveled in her entire life was not as far away as it was today. In my life, I have never been as scared as I am now.
Suddenly the night sky seemed to light up.
Immediately afterwards, she heard a noise coming from the slant.
Hold your breath and listen, and you will hear the sound of someone's muffled humming, rolling sounds, and the "sizzling" sound of kicking fallen leaves.
Xiuniang was surprised and happy to hear her husband's voice, but he seemed to be fighting fiercely with something.
Without too much hesitation, Xiu Niang raised the kitchen knife, shouted "Ah" and rushed over regardless.
Bush branches hit her face several times, causing burning pain, but she ignored it.
I stumbled out for more than ten steps, and suddenly my feet tumbled! The lantern flew away from her hand, Xiu Niang whined and threw herself forward, causing several cuts on her body.
"Xiu Niang?!"
There was an exclamation from the front, which made Xiu Niang immediately raise her head without thinking about herself.
The lantern was rolling in front of her, and the candle burned stubbornly. With the faint light of the fire, she saw two black shadows, one large and one small, fighting under the big tree.
The big one lay on the ground, and a short black figure jumped on him. It opened its mouth and grinded its teeth, making a sound like a jackal breathing, but it was blocked by a stick.
"Xiu Niang! Run! This is a ghost boy!"
The man below shouted at the top of his lungs.
Xiu Niang's body shook violently when she had just stood firm. She suddenly remembered those terrible rumors and became confused and panicked.
But she soon yelled "Ah" again, her blood boiling, she rushed over with a kitchen knife and slashed the ghost boy on the back!
The ghost boy suddenly stopped.
Xiuniang heard her husband's heavy breathing, her own violent heartbeat, the sound of wind blowing by her temples, and suddenly she heard the strange "click-click" sound coming from the ghost boy.
Looking closely, he suddenly found that the ghost boy's head and limbs were all turned over and twisted around.
With red makeup, pink face, and childish face, he stared straight at her!
Xiuniang was so frightened that she lost her grip on the knife and staggered back.
The ghost boy bit the kitchen knife on his back to pieces, slammed into Xiu Niang's arms, threw her down and bit her wildly.
Xiuniang's liver and gallbladder were split apart, she was extremely frightened! He was so desperate that he went crazy and bit the ghost boy on the shoulder.
At that moment, the ghost boy's head was suddenly hit with a strong stick. He let out a strange roar in pain, but then one stick after another hit the back of his head one after another.
But it was the woodcutter who stood up and came to the rescue. He swung his stick and hit him dozens of times. The ghost boy finally fell soft and slipped from Xiu Niang's body.
The woodcutter raised his woodcutter and slashed the ghost boy in the chest!
The ghost boy had a ferocious face, his limbs were flailing around, and he let out a shrill scream like a baby.
The two of them were so frightened that they turned around and fled! But he no longer knew the direction. He stumbled out of the dense forest and found a mountain road, so he just ran away along the road.
"Then the two of us kept coming all the way here without stopping."
The couple sang along and summed up what happened, but only those who had experienced it could understand the danger.
Even so, it is enough to make people frightened, nervous, and secretly sweating a few times.
Mu Haotian's expression was heavy and his eyes were full of compassion, and he said:
"What a story about a woman looking for her husband and a couple who are deeply in love and work together to fight off the ghosts! Especially Xiu Niang, who is a female prostitute, but is not afraid of terror, resolutely goes into the mountains, and has the courage to face the evil to save her husband. I really admire her."
The woodcutter was careless and didn't realize there was something in his words. He laughed and served tea politely.
However, Xiuniang found that Mu Haotian's expression became very strange after hearing this, and he looked behind her and her husband from time to time. She only said that he was frightened by the ghost boy's vicious name, so she comforted:
"Fortunately, that thing may have been seriously injured and didn't catch up, so we and I were lucky enough to escape!"
Mu Haotian shook his head and said:
"A ghost boy is a creature transformed by a resentful spirit. It has a narrow spirit and will be repaid with anger. Since you have hurt it, I am afraid it will be impossible to do good to it. What's more,"
After a pause, he looked behind Xiuniang:
"How do you know it didn't follow?"
The flame of the oil lamp flickered on the table, and a cool breeze slowly blew in through the window. The coldness touched the skin of the back of the neck. The woodcutter and Xiu Niang shuddered and looked back in horror!
Two horrified eyes quickly glanced at the slightly open window behind him, the closed door, and the debris on the four walls of the house.
Except for the slight breeze, there is nothing unusual.
The two turned around, only to see Mu Haotian looking calm and drinking, and they knew he was teasing them. The panic finally subsided, and I felt a little angry again.
The woodcutter slapped the table hard and said angrily:
"Little Taoist! We are grateful and respectful to you, why are you so out of touch?"
Mu Haotian looked at him calmly and asked:
"Brother, have you been observing the shadow behind me just now? Can you tell me why?"
The woodcutter suddenly realized that he was worrying about his suspicion that he was a ghost, and because of his youthful nature, he returned the favor.
After all, he was the first to be abrupt and wanted to ask for help, so he cupped his fists and said:
"Ashamed! Damn it, I saw something was wrong before - the night watchman in the wilderness turned out to be a handsome young man, which was very unreasonable. I also thought about the rumors that ghosts and the like are good at changing the shape of beautiful people, but But the shadows cannot be illuminated by the lights... This is why there was a misunderstanding. We, the couple, just had an evil encounter, and we are a little suspicious. Please forgive me, the Taoist Priest!"
"Do ghostly things have no shadows? The rumors in the countryside are true."
Mu Haotian sighed softly and said,
"Then why don't you look at your feet?"
Before I finished speaking, the cold wind was blowing!
The flame of the oil lamp tilted forward and backward, causing the shadow of the young man on the wall to flex his teeth and claws.
Suddenly a chill filled the warm room.
The woodcutter slowly turned his head and looked down at Xiu Niang:
A slim figure swayed left and right as the wind blew the firelight.
Surprise, confusion, and confusion surged through her heart, but more importantly, she was angry at being teased again. She raised her hand and was about to question the young man, but suddenly she saw the shadow of Xiu Niang on the ground beating and retreating quickly, until it was printed on the back wall.
The woodcutter raised his head in surprise.
Xiu Niang's face was filled with fear, her lips were trembling, and she raised one hand tremblingly, pointing under him.
The woodcutter felt like he had been hit in the head, or like a bucket of ice water pouring over his head. His chest and back were dripping with cold sweat. He stood up suddenly and lowered his head in disbelief.
Around the feet, the light of oil lamps spread all over the ground, and the shapes of tables, stools, and bamboo cups were clearly visible.
But there was only one missing figure.
The woodcutter's mind was buzzing and he was at a loss. He spread his hands and murmured:
"I...why is it me?"
She trembled and took a step towards Xiu Niang, which made her even more panicked. She leaned against the wall desperately, stopped quickly, turned to Mu Haotian, and saw him standing up with his hands on the table, and said:
"Don't worry, brother, I can save you."
His tone is calm and reassuring. Remembering his identity as a Taoist priest, the woodcutter felt a little calmer and just scratched his head and thought hard about what went wrong.
Mu Haotian said:
"You go up the mountain to collect firewood and always go out in the morning and return in the afternoon, but Xiu Niang only caught you fighting with the ghost boy at night. Where did you go during this time?"
The woodcutter was startled. He searched his mind but could not remember what happened during that time. He said:
"Every morning I go up the mountain to collect firewood, and every noon I take a nap under a tree and then go home. It's the same today..."
Mu Haotian answered:
"That's it. The problem must be that Yin Spirit Tree."
Without thinking about what a "yin spirit tree" was, the woodcutter exclaimed:
"Ah! I said that the tree is in good condition, but why is there half a stone slab lying on the side? It belongs to his grandmother! It turns out to be the evil spirit causing trouble? No wonder it was so shady and cool when I slept under the tree today. I dreamed of encountering a ghost boy, and when I woke up, it was at night. That The ghost child is really right next to you!"
He wiped his sweat and stamped his feet. He was so frightened that he stretched out his hand and grabbed Mu Haotian, saying anxiously:
"The Taoist priest said he could save me?"
Mu Haotian nodded and said:
"Living people can naturally be saved, but even gods cannot save dead people."
The woodcutter was overjoyed, but without thinking about the deeper meaning behind his words, when he saw him nodding in confirmation, he immediately thanked him excitedly:
"I beg the immortal master to save me! I beg the immortal master to save me! Wang Yi will never forget his great kindness and kindness!"
After saying that, he looked at Xiuniang, wanting to call her to thank her, but he saw that she was holding her chest, her face was pale, her brows were furrowed and she didn't say a word.
Mu Haotian stared at Xiu Niang's covered chest and sighed:
"Did you fall several times on the mountain, get scratched on the cheek by a bush, and even fight with a ghost boy?"
Xiu Niang nodded numbly, her eyes were blank, as if she was looking at Mu Haotian, and also seemed to be looking at the void in front of him.
The woodcutter over there was confused and was about to interrupt, but then Mu Haotian continued to say to Xiuniang:
"Then aren't you curious why there are no scars on your face and hands?"
Xiu Niang still covered her chest with one hand, and raised her other hand to take a look - it was indeed warm and white, with only some faint traces of calluses.
Then the hand touched his face again.
It was as smooth as ever, but his face was full of confusion.
An unknown feeling suddenly flashed through the woodcutter's heart, and his chest felt uncomfortable. Suddenly, he heard Mu Haotian ask him:
"Brother, you slashed that ghost boy, but do you still remember where you slashed it?"
The woodcutter was stunned and replied:
"Chopped in the chest."
Mu Haotian suddenly turned his head and shouted at Xiuniang:
"Then why don't you quickly open your chest and see what it is!"
The voice was so stern that the woodcutter was startled, but there was no fear on Xiu Niang's face. Instead, the corners of her lips twitched, revealing a strange smile of surprise and relief.
The hand that had been covering his chest slowly lowered and opened his chest.
"Boom!!"
A flash of thunder suddenly flashed outside the window, a thunderbolt in the dark night tore through the sky in an instant, and the dull thunder hammered hard on the woodcutter's heart.
Xiu Niang's exposed chest was actually split with a terrifying blade that was a foot long. It slashed in diagonally, twisting her bones and flesh, and her left breast was completely gouged out.
On the wound as big as a sea bowl, a baby's face with red makeup and pink face suddenly appeared!
