unglückliche Beziehung

Kapitel 7

We were all completely bewildered by this sudden turn of events, standing there dumbfounded, unsure how to help. Just then, Dunzi asked, "What are they saying? Is someone sick and urgently needing a doctor?" I replied, "I overheard them talking about calling a shaman; it's probably related to some kind of shamanistic practice." "Shamanism?" Dunzi and Jenny exclaimed in unison.

35. Shaman God

I nodded and said softly, "This is a primitive religion that is quite widespread in the northern minority areas. Its religious activities include many witchcraft practices involving invoking gods and exorcising evil spirits. This area is close to the Greater Khingan Mountains, where many Oroqen and Manchu people live. Perhaps their shamanistic beliefs were influenced by these northern minority groups." "Witchcraft? I can't believe we can still see witchcraft here after Shenzhou VI went to space!" Dunzi replied, "I always thought witchcraft had disappeared from the world long ago."

As we talked, the old man had already hitched up the donkey cart. Without even saying goodbye, he grabbed the girl and hurriedly ran out of the yard. Jenny then went to the old woman and asked, "Auntie, what happened? Is someone sick? We brought some medical supplies; maybe they can help."

The old woman frowned and sighed, "I don't know what happened, but the third son of the Li family has been wandering into Wolf Gully while gathering herbs in the mountains a few days ago. He was chased by a pack of wolves, barely managed to escape, but since then he's become mentally unstable and sometimes faints suddenly. Later, they invited a shaman from the mountains to examine him, and they learned that the wolf king had stolen his soul." She wiped her moist eyes and continued, "The Li family has suffered so much. Old Li used to have a beautiful and virtuous wife, but she died in childbirth when she gave birth to their third son. Their eldest son was dragged away by wolves while playing in the mountains as a child, and their second son was given away to another family as a cub and hasn't been found since. Now it's just Old Li and his third son living together. And now this has happened to their third son… Sigh, I won't say anymore, I'll go see him."

After listening to the old lady's words, Dunzi quietly tugged at my sleeve and whispered, "The more I listen, the more mysterious this Wild Wolf Gully seems. What if we really go into Wild Wolf Gully and become stupid and have our souls stolen?" I rolled my eyes at him and said, "The battle hasn't even started yet, don't give up before you've already done it."

By then, the old woman had closed the door and led us towards a house at the east end of the village. The moon was already high in the sky, its bright light making the ground appear as if covered with a layer of white frost. The shadows of the tree branches scattered on both sides of the road looked ghostly in the pale moonlight, giving us an indescribable eeriness.

When they arrived at Old Li's house at the east end of the village, they found more than a dozen people already crowded in the yard, all villagers. Old Li was squatting at the doorway, tears streaming down his face, looking extremely sad. The old woman walked up to Old Li, patted his shoulder, and comforted him, saying, "Brother, don't worry, the little one is alright. The shaman will protect him. My husband has already gone with Yingzi to the mountains to invite the shaman. Our donkey is strong and fast; it'll be there in no time." Old Li nodded in gratitude, then sank back into grief.

Afterwards, we followed the old woman into the inner room. Several villagers were already standing there. They all nodded to her as they greeted her. At this point, I noticed the room was extremely simply furnished. Besides a few mahogany chests on the kang (heated brick bed) and a wooden cabinet under the kang, there was no other furniture. It seemed the Li family's life was indeed very difficult.

The old woman came to the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed) and sat down, carefully examining Li's third son lying on it. We followed her closer and saw that Li's third son, who appeared to be in his early twenties, had his eyes closed, his jaw clenched, his face pale, and cold sweat beading on his forehead; he seemed to be seriously ill.

Although we had brought medicine, none of us were doctors and we didn't know what was wrong with this young man, so we didn't dare give him any medicine. I asked a villager nearby, "What's wrong with him? Has anyone seen a doctor?" The villager looked at me and said, "It's far from the county town. When anyone in our area is sick or has a pain, we go to the mountains to invite a shaman to exorcise evil spirits and ward off disasters." He continued, "The shaman came last time. He said that Sanzi's soul has been taken away by the wolf king of the mountains."

Upon hearing this, Dunzi said softly to me, "Why is it the same old story again? Nothing new, is it?" "Keep your voice down, it might be bad if others hear," I said, nudging him with my elbow. Dunzi was clearly still a little unconvinced, muttering to himself. I ignored him and, like the others, quietly stood by, waiting for the old man and Yingzi to invite the shaman from the mountains back.

About an hour later, someone outside the courtyard shouted, "Yingzi and the others are back! The shaman has come!" Upon hearing this, everyone hurriedly went outside to welcome the revered shaman.

We followed the crowd outside and saw the old man had already driven the donkey cart into the yard. Sitting on the cart was a strangely dressed man. He wore a long, five-colored robe, with many thin strips of cloth sewn onto the collar and cuffs. A straw rope was tied around his waist, from which hung all sorts of oddly shaped objects. He wore a leather hat with two tall deer antlers sticking out of it. In his left hand he held a leather drum, and in his right hand he held an animal bone as a drumstick. He calmly stepped down from the donkey cart and began to beat the drum, producing a "dong dong" sound. Dunzi and the others, perhaps because they had never seen anything like it before, stared wide-eyed at this so-called divine being.

At this moment, the shaman didn't go into the house to check on the patient. Instead, he slowly walked around the yard several times, beating a leather drum and chanting incantations as he went. After about eight or nine laps, the shaman stopped, beckoned an old man to his side, and said a few words to him. The old man nodded and then shouted to everyone, "The time has come! Kill a white chicken to invite the mountain god!" After saying this, the old man led the way by kneeling on the ground. The other villagers present followed suit. Seeing this, we knew that a shamanic religious ceremony—a ritual—was about to take place. We felt we should follow the local custom, so we told Jenny and the others to kneel down with them. I quietly said to Dunzi and the others, "This so-called shaman is actually a wizard in shamanism. I think they're performing a shamanic ritual to invite the god." Dunzi and the others nodded in understanding.

Then, two middle-aged men who had been waiting nearby piled up firewood in the middle of the yard and lit a bonfire. As the fire grew stronger, they grabbed a white-feathered chicken that had been prepared beforehand, took a cleaver, and gently slit the chicken's neck. Instantly, the chicken's blood gushed out, pouring onto the roaring flames. As the chicken blood flowed, the shaman stomped his feet on the ground repeatedly, his head shaking from side to side, and his drumbeats grew increasingly rapid. Finally, the shaman cried out "Ouch!" and collapsed to the ground.

Thirty-six, The Wolf King Appears

I was immediately startled, thinking something terrible had happened. Jenny and the others were also startled by the shaman's sudden scream. Fortunately, the other villagers present didn't react unusually, which reassured us a little. After about three or four minutes, the shaman who had fallen to the ground began to make strange "woo-woo" sounds, and then he slowly got up. Once he was fully standing, the crowd cheered. Just then, the shaman shouted three times, "Bainacha, Bainacha, Bainacha!" Then he picked up the leather drum again and began to dance while beating it—if these swaying, swaying, and jumping movements could be considered a kind of dance.

I quietly asked a villager nearby what the shaman meant by chanting "Bainacha." The villager, hearing my question, whispered to me that Bainacha was the mountain god of their vast mountain region, strong and possessing boundless magical power. Sometimes he would reside in an ancient tree in the mountains, and sometimes he would transform into a white cloud floating among the peaks. He controlled the birth, aging, sickness, and death of all living beings in the mountains. I seemed to understand; it turned out that "Bainacha" was the highest deity in the hearts of the villagers.

Just then, the shaman, dancing and shouting, cried out, "The mountain god is here! Which evil spirit has come to cause trouble? Show yourself! Show yourself!" The rest of his words were indistinct, sounding like some kind of religious code. Dunzi, probably amused by this superstitious ritual, was secretly laughing to himself with his head down. Just then, the shaman yelled, "The Wolf King has appeared!"

Strangely enough, no sooner had he finished speaking than a loud wolf howl echoed from the mountains outside the village: "Ooh-woo!" This howl startled us greatly. We had initially thought it was just a ghost story, but it seemed he had actually summoned the wolf king. I glanced at Dunzi. His smile had vanished completely; he was looking around furtively, as if terrified that the wolf king might suddenly burst in and bite him.

Although I myself found it a bit unbelievable, I kept telling myself that it was all just a coincidence, and that the shaman hadn't actually summoned the wolf king. Then I saw the shaman, who was performing the ritual, pull something from his straw rope belt and hold it high. By the light of the roaring campfire, we took a closer look and realized that it seemed to be a clay goat.

Before we could see anything clearly, the two middle-aged men who had killed the chicken earlier walked up to Old Li. One of them whispered something in Old Li's ear. Then, a troubled look appeared on Old Li's face. Finally, as if he had made the biggest decision, he gritted his teeth, closed his eyes, and nodded. As if they had received permission, the two middle-aged men quickly went to a livestock shed by the edge of the yard. After a short while, they dragged a sheep out of it.

The two middle-aged men tied the sheep to the middle of the yard. I was about to ask a villager what was going on when he saw the puzzled look on my face and knew I was about to ask him the same question as before. Before I could speak, he explained, "Bainacha talked to the wolf king for a while, and the wolf king demanded a sheep from the Li family before he would return the soul of Old Li's third son. This sheep is Old Li's only livestock, alas." Jenny seemed to sympathize with Old Li's family, but she didn't say anything and continued to watch the shaman's actions in the middle of the yard.

After the two middle-aged men tied the sheep in the middle of the yard, they stepped aside. The shaman, dancing as he approached the frightened, bleating sheep, began to dance. Then, something strange happened again. The sheep, which had initially stood with its head and body facing the shaman and shifting its position as he moved, seemed to be constantly on guard. But as the shaman danced and uttered incomprehensible chants, the sheep gradually relaxed its guard and finally lay down on the ground, its legs buckling.

Then, the shaman produced a sharp knife from the side. At this point, Jenny seemed to have guessed what was about to happen; she quickly lowered her head, closed her eyes tightly, and couldn't bear to watch any longer. Dunzi, too, was no longer chuckling as before. He was completely captivated by the performance of this mysterious power, especially when the sheep finally lay down obediently, ready to be slaughtered. Dunzi's eyes widened even more, and his mouth opened even wider.

Then, the shaman, holding a sharp knife, danced around the yard once before returning to the sheep. He then chanted and gestured with the knife in front of the sheep several times. Strangely, the sheep remained completely calm, showing no sign of being frightened.

Dunzi turned to me and said, "I never imagined that such mysterious witchcraft really existed in this world." I replied, "Although modern science and technology are quite advanced, there are still many unsolved mysteries that cannot be explained by ordinary scientific principles. For example, the ancient Mayan civilization, the mystery of the pyramids, and this strange shamanic ritual of summoning spirits in a trance. It is said that powerful shamans can walk barefoot on mountains of knives, roll naked over burning coals, exorcise evil spirits, and foresee the future." Dunzi nodded and then asked, "Can they really summon spirits? Do spirits really exist in this world?" I honestly didn't know how to answer him, so I just smiled and remained noncommittal.

Suddenly, the shaman let out a howl like a wolf, and with a swift motion, plunged his dagger into the sheep's carotid artery. Instantly, the sheep's blood gushed out like a fountain. At that moment, the most horrifying scene unfolded. The shaman pulled out the dagger, tossed it aside, and then opened his mouth wide, biting into the dead sheep's bleeding neck wound, frantically sucking its blood.

Seeing this scene suddenly gave me goosebumps and made me feel nauseous. At that moment, I heard the villagers around me saying, "The wolf king has appeared! The wolf king has appeared!" Then they all started kowtowing and worshipping.

The sheep lay sprawled on the ground, its four legs twitching incessantly. The shaman pressed down on the sheep's two front legs with his hands while continuing to suck its blood. After about three or four minutes, the shaman stopped sucking and slowly raised his head. Just then, a shout suddenly came from the inner room: "He's awake! He's awake! The Wolf King has released the soul of the third son!"

Upon hearing this, everyone stood up and hurried towards the house. I wanted to get up and follow them inside to see what was going on. But as soon as I looked up, my eyes met those of the shaman in the middle of the courtyard. The shaman's face was covered in sweat, his hair was disheveled, and fresh sheep's blood smeared his face and mouth; he looked terrifying. The instant our eyes met, I thought I saw a terrifying smile appear on his face. It was incredibly frightening, incredibly eerie, incredibly mysterious. My heart skipped a beat, as if my internal organs had been ripped out.

37. Heading towards the "River of Corpses"

Seeing me standing there in a daze, Dunzi gently tugged at my sleeve and asked, "Hey, hey, brother, what's wrong with you? Are you possessed too?" His call snapped me out of my reverie, and I gave an awkward laugh, saying, "No, nothing. Let's go inside and take a look." Dunzi nodded and stood up with me. Jenny and Abao had already followed the crowd ahead.

Upon entering the inner room, they found that Li's third son, who had been lying on the kang (a heated brick bed), had woken up. Although he still looked weak, his spirits were much better than before. With the help of others, he was able to sit up against the wall. Looking at Old Li, seeing that his only son had finally escaped the control of the wolf king, he seemed to be in a much better mood as well.

Seeing this, Dunzi was greatly amazed and whispered to me, "This is truly incredible! It's even more effective than seeing a doctor. No injections or medicine needed, just killing a chicken and slaughtering a sheep is all it takes." I didn't reply, because when I saw this scene myself, I was also deeply shocked by this mysterious witchcraft. It seems that besides the miraculous Taoist arts passed down for thousands of years by Taoist masters like the Mountain Patrol Master, there is another kind of witchcraft in this world with equally mysterious and unpredictable power.

At this moment, the two middle-aged men who had been killing chickens and leading sheep in the yard accompanied the shaman into the inner room. The shaman whispered a few words in Old Li's ear, and Old Li nodded and went to the main room. A short while later, he returned carrying a bowl of water. The shaman then had someone fetch a handful of ashes from the campfire in the yard, and he pinched a small amount of ash and sprinkled it all into the bowl of water Old Li had brought. Afterward, that bowl of water was called "divine water" and had it fed to Li's third son.

Jenny, who was watching from the side, kept muttering, "Why are they giving patients such dirty water to drink?" I smiled and replied, "Actually, the ingredients in this herbal tea are just charcoal, and it has just been sterilized by a high-temperature fire. All the viruses and bacteria have been burned to death, so it should be fine for people to drink it." Jenny was relieved after hearing what I said.

The shamanic ritual seemed to be drawing to a close. Only a few gossipy women and Old Li himself remained inside. Everyone else followed the shaman back into the courtyard. One of the two middle-aged men who had killed the chicken picked up a sharp knife and skinned, deboned, and gutted the dead sheep. After cleaning it, the sheep's head and a hind leg were cut off and handed to the shaman. The other man picked up the dead chicken from the ground, cleaned it, and gave it to the shaman as well. Finally, Old Li came out of the house, thanked the shaman, and gave him some money as a reward.

When the shaman was taken back by the old man in his donkey cart, the villagers in the courtyard began to roast the sheep around the bonfire. After the sheep was roasted, everyone drank and ate around the fire. It was said that only such a lively scene of everyone eating and drinking together could drive away the evil spirits that came to cause trouble. This process continued until well past midnight, and only after all the food and drink had been finished did everyone leave.

Dunzi was overjoyed at this opportunity, saying he was incredibly lucky to have such a feast even though he had only happened to be in this remote, impoverished place. Hearing him say this, we all kept saying he was building his happiness on the suffering of others. We kept arguing until he was speechless and couldn't lift his head, at which point we burst into laughter. However, we did indeed feel it was a rare opportunity, not because of the food and drink, but because we had the privilege of witnessing the entire process of such a spectacular and magical shamanistic ritual.

Because we had to travel up the mountain path the next day, after returning home with the old woman, everyone quickly washed up and went to rest. Although I was lying on the warm and comfortable kang (heated brick bed) that the old woman had prepared for us, I couldn't fall asleep. The mysterious shamanistic ritual kept replaying in my mind, especially the shaman's face covered in blood, his terrifying expression as he looked at me—that kept me awake.

Early the next morning, we packed our things and prepared to set off. Just as the old man had promised, he had already arranged a guide for us to go into the mountains. I was surprised to see that it was Yingzi, the seventeen or eighteen-year-old girl. The old man smiled and told us that Yingzi had grown up in this mountainous area and knew it very well. Despite being a girl, she was the most capable person in the village when it came to gathering herbs and digging ginseng; she was brave, clever, and everyone liked her.

When Yingzi heard the old man say that about her, she seemed a little embarrassed and glared at him, which made us all chuckle. Since there weren't many places in the mountains where we needed to spend money, none of us carried much cash. Before leaving, Jenny took out a thousand yuan from her wallet and gave it to the old woman, asking her to pass it on to Old Li's family. The old woman was very touched and thanked us repeatedly.

Because the donkey cart was too small to carry so many of us, we had to follow Yingzi, carrying our belongings on foot. Along the way, we asked Yingzi about the shaman. Yingzi told us that because they were mountain people, everyone's livelihood depended on these continuous mountains. They believed their lives, their food and drink, were gifts from the mountains. Therefore, in their hearts, the mountain god, Bainacha, was their most revered deity. However, gods and mortals cannot communicate. To make wishes, to ask the god to descend to earth and relieve their suffering, they had to use a divine being who could communicate between humans and gods to convey their wishes to the mountain god. This divine being was their shaman. According to the elders, their shaman had existed since very ancient times. Those who assume the role of shamans are usually people who, after suffering a serious illness, are healed by a shaman through a ritual of invoking the spirits. They then suddenly gain various mysterious powers, such as the ability to see ghosts and other things invisible to ordinary people, or the ability to walk barefoot on mountains of knives and hot coals. They then learn the arts from the original shaman and eventually inherit the position. She also told me, "If someone like the third son of the Li family, who has been healed by spirits multiple times, were to suddenly develop some kind of magical power, he would very likely be accepted as a disciple by the shaman and inherit the position, speaking on behalf of all the villagers and the supreme Bainacha Mountain God."

After hearing this, I asked her if all the shamans here have passed down their positions from generation to generation in this way. Yingzi said, "Almost all of them do, but there are exceptions." "What exceptions?" Dunzi asked. "Some people become shamans because they dream of being summoned by the mountain god Bainacha, and after waking up they find that they have some mysterious powers."

As we talked, we soon reached the entrance to the mountain path. Yingzi told us that if we followed this mountain path northwest, we would reach the so-called "Corpse River." After crossing the river, continuing north for about thirty li would lead to the Wild Wolf Gully. When Yingzi mentioned the "Corpse River," Dunzi asked, "Yingzi, do you know why there are so many animal carcasses in this river?" Yingzi thought for a moment and said, "I'm not quite sure. It seems that the water in the river is poisonous, and passing birds and animals accidentally drank the poisonous water and died, falling into the river."

As we were talking, the mountain path suddenly turned right. We were about to continue along it when Yingzi stopped us. She told us, "This path leads to Beimang Mountain. We usually use this path to gather medicinal herbs and dig for ginseng in Beimang Mountain. But you should go this way to Wild Wolf Gully." She pointed to a steep cliff on the left. We gasped in shock, and Dunzi exclaimed, "Good heavens!"

Thirty-eight, Corpse River

Following Yingzi's finger, we saw only a narrow path clinging to the steep cliff face. The entire path was almost at a 60-degree angle to the ground. Looking at the cliff itself, it soared into the clouds. The path, too, wound its way into the mist. Seeing this, let alone climbing, just looking at it made our legs weak.

Yingzi smiled and said, "What? Can't climb up?" Dunzi, hearing this, deliberately put on a brave face and said, "Who said we can't climb up? This is a piece of cake for us." With that, he was the first to start climbing up the mountain path. Yingzi followed after him, Jenny and I were in the middle, and Abao was at the very end.

Because this mountain path is rarely traveled, it's almost entirely overgrown with weeds. We often get scratched by thorny bushes and other small thorns. Dunzi, wiping sweat from his brow as he climbed, said, "Why do we always have to walk on such difficult paths every time we come out to search for treasure?" But as soon as he finished speaking, he realized he'd let something slip and quickly shut his mouth. But Yingzi had already heard Dunzi's words and quickly asked, "Looking for treasure? What treasure? Didn't Aunt Zhang tell me you're here for a biological survey?" I quickly explained, "Oh, him? He just likes to treat those wild wolves like his own treasures. The treasure he's talking about is finding those wolf packs." Dunzi, hearing me help him out, quickly said, "Yes, yes, those wild wolves are my treasures. I like to study their habits, their activity patterns, and I like living with them." Yingzi giggled and said, "You guys are so funny. These beasts are always causing trouble, what's so special about them?" At this moment, Jenny also spoke up, "Sister, you don't understand. We're all researchers, our livelihood is studying biology and wild wolves. We're with wild wolves all day long, and naturally, we develop feelings for them over time." After hearing this, Yingzi began to believe it and nodded, saying, "That's true."

After climbing for about the time it takes to burn an incense stick, everyone was too exhausted to continue, so they rested on the mountain path. Yingzi laughed and said to Dunzi, "I told you guys couldn't make it, haha, you're still showing off." Dunzi was speechless with anger and just kept drinking the cold water from his water bottle. I saw that Yingzi was breathing steadily and walking lightly, as if nothing had happened, so I asked her, "Yingzi, you have great stamina. Aren't you tired after climbing for so long?" "What's so tiring about this little bit of road? The path we take to dig ginseng on the main peak of Nianzi Mountain is much higher."

By this time, Dunzi had had his fill of water. Hearing Yingzi mention digging for ginseng, his businessman's mind started working again, and he quickly asked, "Are there many people digging for ginseng around here? Are there many ginseng plants on Nianzi Mountain?" "Yes, almost every household has someone digging. But this mountain isn't as easy to dig as you imagine," Yingzi paused for a breath and said, "These wild ginseng plants in the mountains are hundreds or even thousands of years old, spiritual beings. They can understand human speech and can even turn into little ginseng babies and run away." Hearing this, Dunzi burst into laughter, saying, "Sister, don't try to fool me. I've seen ginseng before, how could it run away? If it really could run away, how were the ginseng sold in stores dug up?" Yingzi replied with a smile, "Don't you know that? Digging..." There are many rules to follow when digging for ginseng. Those who go into the mountains to dig must fast for three days beforehand and then worship the mountain god, Bai Na Cha. They mustn't talk much on the way, especially when digging for ginseng. When they find ginseng, they can't dig it up immediately, because if they disturb it, it will turn into little ginseng babies and run away. So, after finding ginseng, they must first gently tie a long, pre-prepared red cotton thread to the ginseng's branch before digging. Even if it turns into a little ginseng frog and runs away, they can still find it by following the red cotton thread. This way, they won't have to worry about it escaping and can dig up a thousand-year-old ginseng.” We were amazed when we heard this; we never imagined that such a seemingly ordinary ginseng-digging process had so many rules.

After resting for about ten minutes, encouraged by Yingzi, we continued climbing the mountain. Taking breaks here and there, we finally reached the summit around noon. Looking at the majestic mountain ranges in the distance, we felt incredibly refreshed. Yingzi pointed to a winding river below and said, "Look, that's the 'Corpse River'." Then she pointed north of the 'Corpse River' and said, "That ravine is the Wolf Gully you're going to. There are many wolves there, and they're very ferocious. Be careful." We nodded, indicating we understood. Then Yingzi pointed to a mountain peak east of Wild Wolf Gully and said, "By the way, that's where our shaman god lives. He has boundless divine power. If you encounter any trouble, you can go there and ask him for help. From here, just follow this path down the mountain until you reach the 'Corpse River,' and then cross the river to reach Wild Wolf Gully. It's about time, so I have to go back." We were all very grateful to her, said goodbye, and watched her turn and leave.

After hastily eating some dry rations at the mountaintop, we hurried down the mountain one by one. Around four o'clock in the afternoon, the four of us finally reached the banks of the "corpse river." I carefully examined the river before me. For some reason, the banks were almost entirely barren, covered only with sand and rocks, interspersed with numerous animal carcasses. The river was about thirty to forty meters wide on average, the water was black, and it emitted a somewhat nauseating odor. Near the bank, there were indeed one or two bird or animal carcasses stuck in the crevices of the rocks. This scene easily reminded me of the terrifying and evil witches inhabiting the world of movies. Moreover, at this time, the sky was gradually darkening, and everything around us seemed to become eerie and terrifying.

I took out my compass and checked my location, confirming that I was currently on the south bank of the "Corpse River," which was anciently known as the "Si River." I then said to the others, "We've now arrived at the 'Si River' mentioned in the treasure poem. It's getting late, and everyone is tired after climbing the mountain all day. Why don't we rest here for the night and discuss our next plan? But please be careful not to drink the river water, and it's best not to go near the riverbank unnecessarily, to prevent any unforeseen events." Everyone nodded in agreement with my plan.

After dinner, the four of us lit a campfire and sat around it to discuss our next plan. Although we knew the treasure poem said the treasure was hidden north of the "Si River," and we had already reached the banks of the "Si River," we still couldn't find the place called "Wu Mountain." We pondered for a long time without any results. By this time, it was completely dark, and the howling of wolves could be heard intermittently from the valley across the "Corpse River," sending chills down our spines.

As Dunzi took a Soviet-made double-barreled shotgun from his bag, he muttered, "Everyone should be careful; this place is really eerie." He added some firewood to the campfire and continued, "First, we heard about this place called 'Corpse River,' then we saw people go into this valley and get possessed, and finally, they brought in some kind of sorcerer and put on a sinister performance..."

At that moment, I was deep in thought about the "Wushan" incident when Dunzi casually mentioned wizards and witchcraft. Suddenly, a flash of inspiration struck me, and I exclaimed, "Could it be that we've misinterpreted the meaning of this treasure poem?"

39. Poisonous Fog

Everyone found my explanation quite strange and looked at me with puzzled expressions. Jenny put down her treasure hunt diary and asked doubtfully, "Are you saying we've been misunderstanding the meaning of this treasure poem all along?" I nodded and said, "At least our original understanding of the line 'Sparrow dwells on Wushan' was problematic." Dunzi, upon hearing this, asked, "Then how should this line be interpreted?" "Do you think 'Wushan' might not refer to a mountain named 'Wushan,' but rather to a mountain associated with witchcraft, or a mountain where witches reside?" I then said. Everyone agreed that this interpretation made perfect sense and suddenly realized, nodding in agreement.

“So, if that’s the interpretation, then the Wushan mentioned in the treasure poem must be the mountain where the so-called shaman resides,” Jenny said. I nodded. “So, the treasure really is in the Wild Wolf Gully area between that ‘Corpse River’ and that ‘Wushan’?” Dunzi said with a troubled expression, “That desolate area is infested with wolves and witches; it doesn’t seem like an auspicious place.” “What, scared?” Jenny said with a smile, “It’s not too late to back out now. Anyway, I’m definitely going in. Not for the priceless treasure, but just to unlock the secret that supposedly grants immortality, I have to go in and see for myself.” I nodded and said, “We’ve already come this far; there’s absolutely no reason not to go. I’m definitely going in too.” Seeing that everyone was determined, Dunzi said, “I only said that place might be dangerous, not that I wouldn’t go in. Do you think I, Dunzi, am a coward?” After he finished speaking, the other three of us smiled at each other and said nothing more. Since I hadn't slept well the night before and was exhausted after a long day, I really wanted to rest. So I left Ah Bao on duty first, and everyone else lay down to rest.

In the middle of the night, I was sound asleep when I was suddenly awakened by a sharp wolf howl. As I sat up, rubbing my sleepy eyes, I noticed that Ah Bao, who was on duty, was nowhere to be seen. My heart tightened immediately. Jenny and Dunzi also woke up around the same time. Seeing my panicked expression, they knew something had happened and rushed over to ask what was wrong. I told them that when I woke up, I discovered Ah Bao had disappeared sometime during the night, and I was worried something might have happened to him. Hearing this, they became anxious as well, and Dunzi started shouting at the top of his lungs, "Ah-Bao—, Ah-Bao—!" But after a while, there was still no response.

We knew something was wrong, so we all pulled out our weapons, equipment, and flashlights from our bags and split up to search in three different directions. We agreed that regardless of whether we found anyone, we had to be back at the campsite within half an hour.

To me, everything else here seemed ordinary, but what truly felt eerie was the 'River of Corpses' ahead. The banks were barren, littered with animal bones, and animal carcasses floated on the surface year-round. Everything seemed so sinister and terrifying. I worried that Ah Bao might have met with misfortune there. With that thought, I walked step by step towards the riverbank.

As soon as I reached the riverbank, I noticed that the water, which had appeared dark during the day, was now completely obscured. A thin layer of mist had risen from the surface. After walking about ten meters further, my wolf-eye flashlight suddenly shone on something lying across a pile of rocks on the bank. Upon closer inspection, I realized it was Ah Bao! I immediately ran over to it.

When I reached his side and turned him over, I saw that his eyes were tightly closed, his face was pale, and his lips were purple, as if he had been poisoned. Had he been bitten by a poisonous insect? Just as I was about to pull down his trouser leg to check for the bite, I suddenly felt my head spin, and I was about to collapse. So I quickly grabbed my hunting rifle and fired a shot into the air. With a loud "bang," I swayed and fell to the ground, losing consciousness.

I don't know how much time passed, but I felt myself being shaken awake. When I opened my eyes, I found we were already at the campsite. I was lying in Dunzi's arms. Dunzi was shaking me and calling my name. When he saw that I had finally woken up, a look of relief appeared on his face. Although I was awake, I still had no strength at all, so I could only lie in Dunzi's arms and ask, "Dunzi, where's Abao?" Hearing my question, Dunzi seemed to remember something, turned his head to look beside him, and then said, "He doesn't seem to have woken up yet. Jenny is taking care of him." I was a little relieved after hearing this, and then asked Dunzi again, "Dunzi, what happened to me just now?" Dunzi picked up the water bottle, fed me some water, and then said, "You and Abao were both poisoned. When we heard your gunshot and rushed over, we found you both unconscious by the river." I nodded after hearing this. Dunzi continued, "Luckily, Jenny was quite observant. Seeing that you had all suddenly fainted by the river for no apparent reason, and noticing the layer of mist rising from the river, she deduced that the mist might be poisonous, so we didn't approach it rashly. In the end, we took gas masks from the campsite, put them on, and then returned to you to carry them back for you."

Only then did I recall seeing a thin layer of swirling water on the river surface; I hadn't realized it was poisonous. I blame myself for being so careless. It seems highly likely that the reason this "corpse river" is so barren and littered with animal carcasses is due to the poisonous mist it produces. I then speculated that Old Li's third son might have been chased by wolves and wandered to this riverbank, inhaling some of the poisonous gas. The shock likely caused him to lose his mind and become mentally unstable.

Because my poisoning was recent and not severe, I regained consciousness quickly. However, Ah Bao, who had been poisoned at some point, seemed to be in much worse condition than me. I struggled to sit up and turned to look at Ah Bao beside me. He was still in the same state as before, showing no signs of waking up. Seeing that I was awake, Jenny said to me with a heavy heart, "I gave him some antidote, but it doesn't seem to be very effective." At that moment, I suddenly remembered that I still had two pieces of black fungus grass that I had dug up from the Song Dynasty tomb in my bag, so I quickly asked Dunzi to take some out.

After mashing it, Jenny fed it to Ah Bao with cool water. This black sesame herb was indeed a miraculous antidote; less than ten minutes after Ah Bao ate it, his complexion gradually returned to normal. Slowly, he finally opened his eyes. We were all overjoyed.

Once Ah Bao had regained some strength, we asked him what had happened and why he had gone to the "River of Corpses" alone. Ah Bao took a sip of water and slowly replied, "In the middle of the night, I was adding firewood to the campfire when I suddenly heard a loud noise from the riverbank. At first, I thought it was wolves, so I took my gun and went to check around the camp. But as soon as I got to the edge of the camp, I saw a faint blue light emanating from the river. I don't know why, but I seemed to be attracted by the light and unconsciously walked over. After that, I can't remember anything."

We were all quite surprised by Ah Bao's answer. This "River of Corpses" not only produces poisonous fog but also emits a bewitching light. It seems this "River of Corpses" truly holds many secrets.

40. Golden-scaled python

The next day, our original plan was to set off early in the morning and try to cross the river to the north bank of the "Corpse River." However, since both Ah Bao and I had been poisoned, although we had both recovered from the poisoning, Ah Bao's condition was more severe, and his strength hadn't recovered quickly enough. Therefore, we decided to rest here for another day until everyone's strength had fully recovered before continuing our journey.

Because we sensed that this trip into the mountains would be fraught with unexpected dangers, and we couldn't predict what might happen next, we decided to conserve food by saving the easily portable food for the time being and instead focusing on catching birds, animals, and wild fruits in the mountains. We discussed it and decided that Jenny would stay at the campsite to take care of Leopard, while Dunzi and I would each take a Forest King crossbow to hunt some birds and animals in the nearby mountains for today's meals.

The mountains here are indeed rich in resources, no wonder the local people have such strong gratitude and reverence for them. The mountain paths were lined with all sorts of wild fruits. Although they all looked very beautiful, bright red, I didn't dare pick them because I didn't know if they were poisonous. Dunzi, however, was quite smug. Because of his wilderness survival training during his military service, he knew which wild fruits were edible. So, without hesitation, he ate his fill of the tasty ones before picking the rest and putting them in his collection bag. As he picked, he kept telling me which were "military rations" and which were "crabapples," looking very proud of himself. Furthermore, the birds and animals here seemed to have rarely been hunted by humans and didn't seem afraid of people. Only when we got very close would they calmly scurry away. Plus, our Forest King crossbow was well-made, very accurate, and had a long range; in no time, we had shot down two pheasants and a rabbit.

Jenny and Ah Bao were quite surprised to see us return with such a large load in such a short time. I joked that perhaps the mountain god, Bai Na Cha, saw our sincerity and bestowed these gifts upon us because we had knelt for half a day in the Li family's courtyard on the day the shaman performed the invocation.

There was definitely too much game for the four of us to eat in one day, so we decided to leave the rabbit aside and eat it the next day. Dunzi plucked and gutted the pheasant, rubbed some salt inside its cavity, and then roasted it over the fire on a stick. Soon, the fragrant aroma of chicken filled the air.

As I munched on a chicken leg, I lay on the ground gazing up at the blue sky and white clouds above, feeling incredibly content. I never expected to find such a peaceful and comfortable moment amidst the thrilling treasure hunt; it was truly a rare treat. Lost in thought, I drifted off to sleep.

When I woke up, the sun was already setting. Ah Bao had almost recovered and was adding firewood to the fire while chatting with Dunzi. Jenny, as usual, was writing in her treasure-hunting notes in her notebook. Occasionally, the howls of wolves echoed from the distant mountains. But because we were already used to it, we didn't find it unusual.

When night fell, having slept enough during the day, I asked to stay and keep watch. Sitting there was really boring, so I took out the book "Five Planets Divination" that the Taoist priest had given me and continued to study it. I looked at the book and then at the sky, intending to do an exercise by referring to the book and combining it with the actual celestial phenomena, but I didn't expect that this would turn out to be bad.

I saw the celestial signs indicated the seventh hexagram, the fifth and sixth lines of the hexagram "Shi" (師). This foretold the appearance of a strange beast in the fields—a very ominous sign. I dared not delay. I hurriedly put away my "Five Planets Divination" book, grabbed a hunting rifle, and stood up. But as soon as I stood, I realized something terrible. The rabbit we had skinned and placed on the rock directly in front of me was gone. And the large pile of luggage we had left beside the rock was shaking and making faint rustling sounds.

I immediately kicked Dunzi and the others awake and pointed my crossbow at the pile of packages. Seeing something amiss, everyone instantly snapped out of their drowsiness and grabbed their weapons, standing beside me. Seeing that everyone had their eyes open, I bent down, picked up a large rock, and hurled it forcefully next to the packages. With a "crack," as the rock hit the ground, a head suddenly emerged from the pile of packages.

Its head was the size of a basketball, and its two eyes gleamed white in the night, as bright as the wolf-eye flashlights in our hands. Its head was covered in coin-sized golden scales, and it occasionally flicked out a long, thin, purplish-black tongue from its mouth. This was clearly a giant python! I was startled at the sight. It's said that "snakes in the south, scorpions in the north," and the dry climate of the north is not suitable for snakes that prefer damp environments. Therefore, snakes are generally very rare in the mountains of the north, let alone giant pythons like this, which are usually only found in the tropical rainforests of the south.

Everyone except me was startled by the sight. Dunzi, fearing a sudden attack from the giant python, tried to pull the trigger before we could even utter a sound. With a "whoosh," a pure steel crossbow bolt flew towards the snake's head, striking the golden-scaled python's head with a "crack." But strangely, the snake's head seemed to be made of steel, practically impervious to blades and spears. The steel bolt didn't penetrate as we expected; instead, it bounced off and fell to the ground with a "clink."

This seemed to anger the giant snake, which suddenly raised its head, its head emitting faint, eerie blue light. Only then did we realize that the blue light Ah Bao had seen emanating from the "river of corpses" was actually this giant python. Thankfully, we hadn't encountered it when we collapsed on the bank. Just then, the giant snake forcefully smashed through the bundles and bags blocking its path, writhing as it charged out. Its sudden appearance startled us again. It had four short legs, resembling those of a typical lizard, only much larger. This appearance reminded me of a hornless dragon called a "Qiu" from mythology.