Lanpu

Kapitel 3

I found my pajamas and decided to take a shower and get some sleep. After all, I have to get to school early tomorrow morning.

My room was a suite with a shower and bathroom facilities. As I turned on the shower and waited for the water to heat up, I heard a sudden crash and a piece of the bathroom ceiling was lifted off.

“…Huang’e,” I called softly. But she didn’t follow me into the bathroom. I rushed over to open the door, only to find that while the handle could turn, the door seemed to be integrated with the wall, not moving an inch.

I froze, afraid to look up. The water from the showerhead kept spraying, but it was icy cold and had no warmth at all.

A strong sense of being stared at me directly from the gap in the ceiling, and I refused to look up no matter what. My heart was pounding, like a drum beating against my ribs.

"Wasteland!" I screamed, "I command you..."

I felt a weight on my left shoulder, and a sense of comfort washed over me. I turned my head... I shouldn't have turned my head.

A mushy mass of rotting flesh, with the faint outline of shrunken facial features. It wriggled, touching my face, the festering sensation palpable. It opened its pupil-less eyes, staring at my face, and let out a shrill cry.

In that instant, I was gripped by fear.

It felt like ice had seeped into my spine, leaving my limbs completely stiff and paralyzed. I fell hard onto the tiles, and if I hadn't knocked over the tripod behind me, I might have smashed my head in.

The fall was incredibly painful, and I probably twisted my neck, but it brought me to my senses a little. I forcefully pushed away the mangled baby and forced myself to look up at the hole in the ceiling. Dirty, filthy blood poured down from the hole, immediately submerging my legs.

I crawled toward the door using both my hands and feet and shook it with all my might, but the door still wouldn't budge.

"Waste! Waste!!" I yelled, pounding on the door. "Let me out!"

Next, I couldn't even speak. Countless hairs emerged from the filthy blood and tightened around my neck. The increasingly loud cries of a baby made it impossible for me to even hear my own voice.

Air. I need air. I feel my face throbbing, my ears pounding, and my heart clenching with fear. I can only grip the door tightly, amidst the stench of blood and dust. A soft snap; the bathroom is completely dark.

I was buried. Is this what burial is? Am I in my own funeral?

"A...just kidding..." Perhaps I was so scared that I became extremely angry. "Why did you bury me in my mother's house? Why?! Mom, Mom!"

I screamed and banged on the door, stumbling and falling awkwardly into my room.

He looked at me from behind the bathroom door. With eyes that had no pupils.

I retreated in a panic, all the way to the window, while he sluggishly and unsteadily walked over. The blood had turned into clumps of mud-like "people," groaning and howling, half-walking and half-crawling.

Slow and determined.

I climbed onto the windowsill, shivering uncontrollably. It wasn't just fear, but more importantly, the cold. Nobody takes a shower dressed, and I was completely naked, though there was nothing of value in peeping at me.

They've cornered me right under the windowsill. If I back away any further, I'll have to jump. But this is the fourteenth floor!

I pulled my feet up onto the windowsill.

"...Don't come any closer." A cold wind blew, and I shivered, but they had already reached the windowsill. I almost wanted to climb over the railing and jump...

At least put on some clothes before jumping, right? Jumping like this is too embarrassing. Seriously, what's so embarrassing about falling flat on my face...? But wait, why would I jump?

Because of the "distraction," the mind, dominated by intense fear, began to function.

I braced my hand and pressed down on the slingshot.

"Get out of my way!" I yelled at them. "Or I'll use my mother's name to wipe you all out!"

Huang E, who had been watching the show while clinging to the chandelier, flinched, and the group of strange creatures also paused.

Although the fragrance has faded over time, my stepmother's image in my heart has not faded at all. She is still protecting her daughter who is not related to her by blood; even death has not severed her love.

I grabbed the empty slingshot and "shot" it at the strange baby. He let out a sharp, terrified scream, rolling around and crying for his mother. The other muddy creatures receded like a foul tide, whimpering and moaning in pain.

“How cruel, how cruel!” Huang E cried out. “You will never be a good person! They were just suffering and hoping for some comfort, but you killed them so mercilessly.”

I fired another shot. A high-pitched, furious shout rang out, "That's right! I will never be a good person! But I will never be a villain either! Don't expect any comfort or relief from me, not a chance! Is it my fault? Is it all my fault? Bullshit! My life is threatened, I'm the one who's been hurt! Whoever tries to kill me, I'll retaliate brutally, because I know nothing! Including you, Huang'e! Even if I have to drag you, I'll drag you to hell to die together!"

I don't care. In this house, the only ones protecting me are my deceased stepmother and myself. I don't care if it backfires, or if it destroys anything. I don't care if this greedy and filthy house is destroyed.

This is the first time I've gone this far. Because this is the first time Huang'e has completely betrayed me. I've been bound to Huang'e for too long, and I've been influenced by her too deeply. I used to have reservations, but now I don't care anymore. I not only rudely found all the evil talismans, but I also found the little ghost altar that Aunt Huang keeps.

Then it was completely destroyed.

I used to worry, thinking that since I was leaving this family, I didn't want to break up the family's integrity. As for Aunt Huang's immature spells, I didn't want to argue with her about the calamities.

But I finally realized that Huang E wasn't on my side. She was a treacherous and cunning woman, indulging in a bloody ecstasy, who wanted nothing more than for me to be harmed, as long as I was alive.

Now that the altar and talisman have been destroyed, she can only wait for the backlash and for her child to become an orphan.

I refuse to bear this guilt, because I am not a good person. I am not the one who did evil, but Huang E dared to raise her voice at me, and I will absolutely not be polite to her.

That day, I didn't sleep at all. I knew that because I didn't have any so-called "spiritual cultivation" to support this destruction, I had to use my life force to make up for it. But the rising anger made me ignore the pain of coughing, vomiting, and fever.

***

The next day, no one in the house was in a good mood.

But I waited until my father appeared before I took my leave, and now, there's no need for any formalities.

“Dad,” I said hoarsely after a long string of coughs that almost made my lungs come out, “if you can, talk to a lawyer and say that I want to renounce all my inheritance rights. I don’t want anything. I just want you to support me to finish college.”

He stared wide-eyed, looking somewhat uncomfortable. "What are you saying?"

"I said, I just want to finish college, I'll take out a student loan for the tuition, you just need to support me until college!" I coughed and yelled, "Tell your wife to stop raising ghosts and making those talismans! Can't you just let me live a normal life?! I don't want anything anymore!"

"You're talking nonsense!" Aunt Huang screamed at me.

“Oh, right.” I blew my nose and sneered. “I burned your talismans and altar. Deny it or admit it. If you don’t want your child to become an orphan, you’d better start preparing.”

I turned my head and found that her face was as white as paper.

I really can't stand this kind of family anymore.

I yelled at her, "Don't mess with me again! Do you hear me? Don't mess with me again! You have a child, think about how that child is someone else's flesh and blood! I beg you, have some decency, at least do some good for your child!"

I strode out, slammed the door, and walked out.

***

later?

That was the end of it. I never went back to that house, and I didn't want anything anymore.

I heard that Aunt Huang was in a serious car accident, which not only disfigured her but also left her lame for the rest of her life. But I think she's already very lucky; for someone who dared to manipulate ghosts and spirits, this ending is already quite merciful.

Although she repeatedly defended herself, I had no idea what my father said. I didn't care about them at all. They didn't want to see me either; only my lawyer came to see me. They did send me my living expenses on time every month, without fail.

All my connections with them have come to an end.

Huang'e became afraid of me and hated me intensely. She often made vicious predictions that I would never be a good person.

So what?

“O calamity, I also foretell your future.” I mimicked her tone and said, “You will never have the chance to be born.” I had made up my mind, “I will bind you with this life until I die, and let you rot in my bones.”

"...You can't treat me like this!" she screamed in terror.

"Just you wait and see," I sneered.

She and I both knew that this prophecy would surely come true.

(Fu Yang finished)

ignorance

The last few months of my senior year seemed to end in chaos. Perhaps rationality was a good shield, keeping out many outsiders. Or perhaps, after my outburst, Huang'e became exceptionally cautious towards me.

I think she probably hoped that after her good performance, I would reconsider that ominous "prophecy".

"...Love is a wonderful thing." She racked her brains and managed to come up with this weak reason.

"Really?" I stared straight at the textbook while flipping through the reference book. "How did you know? Have you ever been in love? I doubt the word 'love' is even in your dictionary."

I think her dictionary not only lacked the word "love," but probably all words related to goodness. Thinking of that tattered dictionary, as if gnawed by termites… I couldn't help but smile.

She was furious and almost pinched my left shoulder until it was bruised, but that still couldn't extinguish the genuinely happy smile on my face.

After a moment of frustrated silence, he said, "...I promise I'll behave from now on. Please don't be a staunch advocate of remaining single."

Of course, I could refuse outright. But after spending so much time with her, I admit I've become quite cunning and manipulative. To get someone to do what you want, you have to have leverage over them and keep them from completely losing hope.

Despair can drive a person to do anything, and so can the ferocious bird.

"It all depends on your performance." I neither said it was good nor bad, "It's hard to say."

"I want a promise," she said eagerly, seizing the opportunity.

He smiled and watched her until she turned her head away uncomfortably. "...It's just a promise."

“My promise…you know I’m honest.” I continued flipping through the reference book, “but your promise is less reliable than the wind. I won’t make any promises to you unless you make me trust you.” Her expression was gloomy; I couldn’t press her too hard. “Maybe soon. We’ve been together for over a decade; we know each other very well.”

She visibly relaxed.

I must say, Huang E really "educated" me very well, so well that she could fool herself.

But I was cautious, trying my best not to order Huang'e around. The dark, demonic aura she exuded was like the most intoxicating poppy scent for other creatures—deadly, yet so alluring. Huang'e was now a special being, like a sea dragon trapped in shallow waters, or a plucked roc. This was the only chance to devour her or eliminate her, and even now, escape from her sharp claws was difficult.

So they turned their attention to the host, a target that seemed much easier to target.

But after I stopped relying on the Desolate Calamity, I discovered that I also possessed a bit of power. I had allowed the Desolate Calamity to absorb my life force and shadow for too long, so it had also tainted me with a faint trace of demonic energy. Although it always came at the cost of my health, I could still easily pull up a slingshot without bullets and send those aliens running for their lives.

I cleaned what I could myself, even though I caught a "cold" all winter because of it. Calling it a cold is an understatement; it was more like a "wind-evil" (a traditional Chinese medicine term for a cold). We must admit, the ancients were quite wise.

I spent my last semester of senior year in this precarious balance, and then welcomed the summer after graduation.

Summer came late that year, and the plum rains only lasted two days before ending. Although it was July, we still had to wear thin long-sleeved jackets because the wind still carried the chill of spring, and the sun was still hidden behind the clouds.

The "cold" that lingered throughout the winter and half of spring is finally showing signs of recovery. I'm rubbing lanolin on my peeling nose, with a steaming cup of hot milk in front of me.

Everything was alright. The evil spirit kept chattering in my ear about the neighbors' scandals and gossip, while a few persistent little devils hopped and skipped on the windowsill, licking the remaining demonic energy from the glass. The slingshot was within my reach; they glanced at me warily, then at the slingshot, knowing that if they didn't mess with me, they wouldn't be sent flying all over the place.

This dangerous and terrifying balance was finally maintained. Just as I forced the desolation to bow to me, they were also willing to admit that not provoking me was the more rational choice.

But the number of these little devils is decreasing day by day. The rate of decline seems to be a bit too fast. Before, they filled the entire window, creating a terrifying yet hilarious scene—after all, it was both scary and funny to see them pressing their faces against the glass—but now there are only half a dozen left.

They probably figured it wasn't going to work out, so they gave up on their own. I didn't think much of it and picked up my warm milk to sip slowly.

The sudden loud noise almost made me choke to death on the scalding hot milk.

Suddenly, the half-dozen little ghosts began pounding on the glass in utter terror, emitting horrifying howls. Then, a flash of silver light appeared, and before I could even see what it was, one of the ghosts vanished. The other survivors cried and screamed even more frantically, trying to find a crack in the window beneath the barrier formed by the aura of desolation and evil.

A flash of silver light, and the second imp disappeared.

I shouldn't have pitied them. They were eyeing me like hawks, wanting to drive me mad or kill me so they could have a chance to devour me.

But against my will, I opened the window, and the four little devils rushed in, trembling desperately in my shadow. Even when I picked up my slingshot and yelled at them, they just huddled together, pitifully kowtowing in the shadows.

The wind carried a fishy, foul odor, like that of some kind of reptile or rust.