The first volume of the funeral Chapter 12 Curse
It is said that there are cases of corpse resurrection in real life, and the scientific explanation is that it is related to bioelectricity.
Ke Xun thought, no matter how powerful bioelectricity is, it can't be as powerful as natural electricity. The lightning that struck down must be at least hundreds of millions of volts, right? In reality, people might have been burned to death long ago, but this is not reality. What if a ghost lady from the underworld came down? Who can withstand it?
"How about we hide the coffin?" Ke Xun discussed with Mu Yiran.
"There is nowhere to hide." Mu Yiran's eyes were solemn. "No matter where you hide it, it can only be in the house or in the ground. It is no different from putting it in the mourning hall. If the lightning can hit the coffin through the house, the consequences will be the same no matter where you hide it."
"...This is forcing us to sit there and wait for death." Ke Xun punched the tree trunk hard.
"If we can find the seal before tonight, we won't have to worry about thunder or not." Mu Yiran said and went down the tree.
As soon as Ke Xun got down from the tree, he saw those people who had gone to the cemetery to check came back, with the aftermath of the shock on their faces.
After obtaining Mu Yiran's consent, Ke Xun told these people about his suspicions about the ghost face on the locust tree and asked everyone if they wanted to look for it together.
"Let's eat first." The doctor was calm and composed, "We need to save up our energy. We can look for someone after we finish eating."
We still had lunch at the old man's house. It only consisted of steamed cornbread, pickled vegetables and fried bean sprouts. Although it was still unpalatable, everyone tried their best to fill their stomachs.
"I miss Jianbing Guozi deeply now." Wei Dong whispered to Ke Xun and glanced at the pancake stall owner sitting opposite him.
I don't know if the pancake stall owner had accepted his fate or was just terrified. He sat there in a daze, not saying a word.
After lunch, everyone gathered under the three locust trees and started to check the ghost faces on the trees.
Wei Dong went around the tree and was carefully poking a dead branch into the mouth of a man with a wretched face when he felt someone approach him and whispered to him, "What clues did you find?"
I turned my head and saw it was Liu Yufei.
“Isn’t this the clue ?” Wei Dong pointed at the ghost face.
"That's all?" Liu Yufei's face flashed with disbelief. "It's impossible that Mr. Mu has only found these few clues so far. I'm afraid he didn't tell you two."
“From what you said, he’s pretty awesome?” Wei Dong asked while continuing to make faces.
Liu Yufei snorted and laughed: "That's awesome. He was the first one to find the seals for the first two paintings, and..."
"Just keep half and be careful of constipation tonight," said Wei Dong.
Liu Yufei glared at him and said, "Don't blame me for not reminding you. Mu is not as kind as he appears to be. His face is too deceptive."
"I really don't think he is kind," Wei Dong made a face, "but I do agree with you that his face is deceptive." He looks like a calm and composed person, but he is very aggressive once his aura opens.
Liu Yufei had a cold face and lowered his voice: " Then do you know that in the first two paintings, anyone who teamed up with the surname Mu was unable to leave the painting in the end?"
Wei Dong paused and looked up at him in surprise: "Climbed out?"
"..." Liu Yufei's face changed with anger, but he seemed to have tried hard to control his emotions. He gritted his teeth and asked Wei Dong, "Did he really not find any other clues?"
"How would I know? Even if someone finds out, they won't tell me." Wei Dong lowered his head and continued to make faces.
"You'd better be more careful in the painting," Liu Yufei looked at him, "the more clues you can find, the more hope you have of opening the painting."
"Okay, I understand." Weidong said.
"Don't forget, we both got the same words, and it is very likely that we will live or die together." Liu Yufei reminded him in a deep voice, "So I hope that you and I can share clues and work together to find a way to leave here."
"Okay, I understand." Weidong said.
Liu Yufei glared at him for a long time, and finally picked up a dead branch from the ground and started poking his face with him.
The group searched for an entire afternoon but still couldn't find anything useful.
At this moment, the sky was as gloomy as night, and thick clouds rolled and gathered overhead, constantly changing, surging, and squeezing.
"Go back, it's getting dark." The doctor's deep voice made everyone's mood even more gloomy.
The old man said that we should return to his house when dark and arrange tasks for everyone for the night.
This also means that the second round of terror has begun.
"Whoever gets the cloth strip with the word 'Gu' will be in charge of keeping watch tonight. Whoever gets the cloth strip with the word 'Dai' will be in charge of digging graves in the northern suburbs of the village. Whoever gets the cloth strip with the word 'Yang' will go to the Li family's firewood room to chop wood. Whoever gets the cloth strip with the word 'Qu' will guard the Li family's granary."
After the old man finished speaking, he turned and went to the next room, leaving the eight people with different expressions in an unspeakable silence.
"...I...I don't want to die..." After a long while, the silence was finally broken by a trembling whine, "Ke'er, I don't want to die...I don't want to go to the funeral home, I don't want to die..."
Wei Dong panicked, and with a pale face he grabbed Ke Xun's arms, trying to get protection or reassurance from his good brother.
Ke Xun grabbed his body, which was almost unstable, and felt extremely anxious.
"Mu! Where is the seal?!" Liu Yufei, who also got the cloth strip with the word "Gu" on it, was furious. He rushed forward and stretched out his hand to pull Mu Yiran's lapel, but Mu Yiran slid away.
"Are you so inhumane that you can just watch others die?!" Liu Yufei screamed, his eyes showing despair and madness, "Tell me the clues you know! I don't want to die! No one wants to die! Why do you want to get out alive?!"
After shouting to this point, he waved his hand at the people around him, "The guy named Mu must know the clue of where the seal is! Everyone, come together! Let him tell you! He knows! He must know!"
Everyone was silent, looking at the emotionally broken Liu Yufei with dead eyes.
Although other people might not survive this night, those who go to guard the mourning hall... are almost certain to never return.
"I think," the doctor said calmly, "while we still have some time, let's talk about all the clues we can think of. If we put them together, we may be able to find the seal."
Seeing that everyone was still silent, the doctor added, "According to the arrangements made yesterday and today, the tasks of keeping vigil and digging graves will sooner or later fall on other people."
What this means is that no one can escape. If we don't provide clues and everyone works together, we will all die here sooner or later.
Seeing that everyone was moved, the doctor continued, "Let me start with a suggestion. This morning, I walked around the village and found a stone tablet at the entrance of the village. The inscription on the tablet was a brief history of the village.
"Everyone in this village has the surname Li. I think the villagers here are probably from the same clan. Their ancestors can be traced back to the Warring States Period. They were officials in the Qin State at that time, and their official title was 'Zong Zhu'.
"As far as I know, the position of 'Zongzhu' is responsible for praying to ancestors and ghosts and gods, so this position is like a wizard.
"I think this clue might have something to do with the content of this painting. The above are the clues I have obtained so far that seem to be relatively useful. If you have any ideas, please share them with us so that we can analyze them together."
After the doctor finished speaking, his eyes first fell on Mu Yiran.
"Things about ghosts and gods, isn't that nonsense!" Liu Yufei shouted angrily, "Even if their ancestors weren't some kind of patriarch, this painting is still full of ghosts and gods! Your clue is completely useless!"
No one paid any attention to him. They all stared at Mu Yiran as if he were a savior.
"I think there is a pattern to the deaths of the five people last night." Mu Yiran said calmly, "And I also think the village history on the stone tablet you mentioned is not completely useless."
"It's the same as if you didn't say anything!" Liu Yufei rushed up again and tried to pull Mu Yiran, but Ke Xun next to him grabbed his wrist.
"Either shut up and think of a solution, or I'll turn your clothes into a broken-arm shirt." Ke Xun said expressionlessly. He applied a little force with his hands, causing Liu Yufei to scream in pain and cold sweat immediately broke out on his forehead.
"Speaking of the deaths of the five people," the doctor continued Mu Yiran's words, "the two who died in the cemetery were indeed a bit strange. When we went over, the crows were already eating the bodies, but we could still see that the two bodies were divided into several equal portions - note, it was 'equally divided', very evenly divided, which made me feel a little unnatural. Unless that kind of power has obsessive-compulsive disorder, I don't think it is necessary to be so meticulous."
Mu Yiran lowered his eyes in deep thought. Seeing this, the doctor stopped disturbing him and looked at the others: "Does anyone have any clues to provide? Even if it seems insignificant and very normal, you can tell me."
"Let me tell you one," Ke Xun was the first to speak. Seeing that Mu Yiran seemed to know what he was going to say and did not speak to stop him, he continued, "It's not about the clues of the seal, but about how to avoid being killed by those two paper figures."
Everyone's eyes immediately focused on his face.
"No matter what task you are assigned, find a way to hide yourself completely, whether it's covering yourself with a sack or using firewood. Just don't let those two paper figures see you. If the paper figures walk in front of you, be sure to hold your breath."
"What about the grave diggers?" the person who got the cloth strip with the word "歹" asked hurriedly.
Ke Xun shook his head: "I don't know."
"If it doesn't work, try covering your body with soil," said the doctor.
"Where are the people guarding the funeral hall?" Wei Dong asked with a pale face and a trembling voice, "Will the one in the coffin run out? Was it the thing in the coffin that dug out the eyes of those three people?"
No one answered him and the room was almost dead silent.
"Has Xiaomu come up with anything?" the doctor broke the unbearable silence.
"I am very concerned about the fact that the villagers' ancestors were Zongzhu." Mu raised his eyes with joy, and everyone immediately looked at him.
"Doing things related to gods and ghosts, and being a wizard, was very common during the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period." Mu Yiran said, "Cursing was very popular at that time. For example, before a war between two countries, a ceremony to curse the monarch of the enemy country would be held. The most famous one is the "Curse of Chu". It was written in the late Warring States Period, when the struggle between Qin and Chu was at its most intense. The King of Qin prayed to the gods to bless Qin to win and cursed Chu to fail.
"Considering the current situation, the three locust trees behind the Li family's house, known as Yin wood, may be a curse. In some places, locust trees are called 'ghost beckoning'. In addition, according to legend, it gathers Yin and attracts ghosts. I have reason to suspect that the person who planted these three trees behind the Li family's house had bad intentions towards this family.
“Moreover, even if it is a world in a painting, the scenes presented must be logical, the story must be thorough and without bugs. But last night at the Li residence, we did not see any descendants or close relatives of the Li family. According to common sense, this is a bug.
"Our roles should be those of the villagers who went to help the Li family. If we were members of the Li family, the linen clothes we wore would not be of this style. This shows that the Li family should have no descendants or relatives. To put it bluntly, the family is extinct.
"For the ancients or people in the old times, being extinct was considered a tragic fate in the eyes of others. Some people said it was retribution or a curse.
"In addition, the coffin in the mourning hall is made of pure cypress wood. If a coffin is made of pure cypress wood, it will be struck by lightning. Struck by lightning is not a good word, and it is usually used to curse others verbally. But if it is put into practice with a pure cypress coffin, this curse is not just a verbal curse, but a real, man-made, deliberate, and actual curse.
"Combining the above points, we can come up with a clue, which I don't know if it is an important one. That is, the family holding the funeral was cursed artificially. From the time when the three locust trees were planted until now, the family has died without any descendants. The one in the mourning hall is the last person in their family. This family has become extinct."
