Hexe

Kapitel 14

He looked on, hesitant, as if waiting for something.

Seeing Shunhe arrive with Kong Jing and Luo Fei, Shunhui and the others were clearly surprised. They quickly discussed a few words, then suddenly took off running down the snowy path.

"Quick, call them back and tell them not to run!" Kong Jing wished she could rush to the door and catch up with these cowardly and reckless guys, but her legs were too weak, so she could only helplessly instruct Shunhe, who was running in the lead.

Shunhe chased after them with all his might, standing at the entrance of the mountain road and shouting loudly, "Senior brother, stop running! The abbot wants you to come back!"

However, Shunhui and the others didn't linger; instead, they quickened their pace down the mountain without even glancing back. Because the path was rugged, slippery, and difficult to traverse, Shunhui even tripped and fell, but he immediately got up. It seemed that compared to the fear of remaining on the mountain, the pain was nothing. The other two also staggered along, looking utterly disheveled.

When Kong Jing arrived at the entrance to the mountain road, panting heavily, Shun Hui and the other two had already run more than 50 meters away along the mountain path, and it was clear that she could not catch up with them.

"The mountain road is impassable, where are you all going!" Kong Jing stamped his feet anxiously as he watched their backs, but his words could no longer reach Shun Hui and the others.

"Forget it, let them go." Luo Fei seemed more indifferent. "When they realize they can't get down there, they'll naturally come back."

Kong Jing shook her head helplessly: "That's all we can do. Sigh, let's go back..."

"Abbot, shall I go back to my room too?" Shunhe asked, clutching his chest. Perhaps because he had been running back and forth too quickly, his complexion looked unwell, and his voice was weak.

Luo Fei stared intently at Shunhe, a strange look flashing across his face.

"You should go back first. I have some things to discuss with the abbot," he said to the young monk.

Shunhe agreed and walked into the temple alone.

Luo Fei's expression was stern as he watched Shunhe's figure disappear behind the main hall.

"Director Luo, is something wrong?" Kong Jing noticed something amiss.

Luo Fei stroked his chin, pondered for a moment, and said, "Later, tell someone to keep an eye on Shunhe's room and not let him out. Also, have someone send him dinner tonight."

"Why?" Kong Jing's heart skipped a beat, and a strong sense of foreboding arose.

"Didn't you notice? He's not feeling well, and his eyes are a bit red."

"Director Luo, you mean..." Kong Jing realized the subtext in Luo Fei's words, and was both anxious and afraid, her voice trembling slightly.

"I'm just taking precautions, hoping nothing will happen." Luo Fei said these comforting words to Kong Jing, then let out a long sigh. It was clear that he himself was also preoccupied.

Kong Jing looked at Luo Fei with some confusion: "What if something happens? What should we do then?"

Luo Fei remained silent; this was also a question he was pondering deeply.

"Wait for rescue." After a long pause, he finally spoke, offering this answer. Amidst Kong Jing's disappointed gaze, he looked up at the vast sky, golden sunlight bathing his face, while Luo Fei felt a chill creep into his heart. Perhaps only he truly understood how dire the situation had become!

Kong Jing gave a bitter smile, but no matter what, as long as she was waiting, there was still hope.

"Let's go back first," Luo Fei said as he started walking. "There are some things I need to think about alone."

The two returned to Kong Jing's room one after the other. This time, Luo Fei did not intend to stay long. His purpose in coming was simply to help Kong Jing clear out the headless grass from the room.

When Shunping brought the headless grass into the house, he used a long black robe to wrap it up. Luo Fei hadn't paid much attention to this robe before, but now that he was using it to wrap things up again, he realized that it wasn't an ordinary monk's robe.

To be precise, it can't really be called a garment; it's more like a cloak. What's even more peculiar is that it has a hooded cloak at the back, somewhat resembling the robes of medieval European monks.

"What kind of clothes are these?" Luo Fei picked up the long coat and shook it open to see what it was.

Kong Jing glanced at it and replied, "This is the ritual robe that Junior Brother Kong Wang is wearing."

"Ritual robes?" Luo Fei was a little confused.

"Kong Wang is very knowledgeable about things like supernatural divination. When someone dies in a nearby mountain village, they sometimes ask him to perform some rituals to help the deceased pass on. This is the kind of clothing he wears specifically for those occasions."

Luo Fei nodded, as if he had thought of something, and then he brought the clothes to his nose and smelled them.

Kong Jing's expression changed: "These clothes also have that smell?"

Luo Fei gave a faint "hmm," as if this outcome was entirely within his expectations. He rewrapped the pile of hay with his clothes and got up to leave.

“I took all of these with me,” he said.

Kong Jing looked at the package with disgust and fear, wishing these strange things would disappear as far away as possible.

"When will the reinforcements be able to get up the mountain?" Kong Jing asked as Luo Fei was about to walk out the door.

"In two or three days. If it snows again in the meantime, it's hard to say." Luo Fei looked up at the sky outside the door, the afterglow of the setting sun seemed to tell him that this possibility was not very high.

"Two or three days..." Kong Jing murmured to herself, wondering what might happen during that time.

Luo Fei understood Kong Jing's feelings, but now, what could they do besides wait?

During the evening meal, the disappearance of Shunhui, Shunhe, and others caught the attention of the monks, and rumors began to circulate in private that Shunhe had been possessed by a demon. Shunhe's condition was indeed dire; he was bedridden. Although he hadn't yet shown the terrifying symptom of bleeding from his eyes and mouth, Luo Fei knew that if no action was taken, it was only a matter of time before he succumbed to his illness.

What measures should be taken? Twenty years later, the demon from "Death Valley" has returned, but the method to subdue it has become a mystery.

Night falls particularly quickly in the mountains. After the sun sets, it soon becomes completely dark. Following Luo Fei's instructions, everyone returned to their rooms, and in an atmosphere of confusion and unease, Kumu Temple fell into yet another silent night.

Meanwhile, Shunhui and the other two, who had sneaked out that afternoon, were struggling back to the temple. They had hoped to escape the isolated temple shrouded in terror, but after finally reaching the halfway point, they discovered that the snow had blocked the mountain path, making it impossible to descend. Their hopes were shattered, and they could only dejectedly choose to turn back. Although the situation on the mountain was terrifying, at least there was food and shelter there, so they wouldn't freeze to death in the snow.

The excitement they felt upon stepping out of the temple gates had vanished completely. Dragging their weary bodies, they slowly made their way to the entrance, arriving at midnight. Everyone inside was fast asleep; the entire temple was dark and deathly silent.

Returning after leaving was not a glorious thing to begin with, and the three of them were already exhausted, so they decided to keep quiet and quietly go back to their rooms to rest.

As soon as Shunhui stepped into the backyard, he had a strange feeling. He felt as if a pair of eyes were watching him from the shadows, but he didn't know where the feeling came from. When he reached his house and was about to open the door, the feeling became even stronger, and he couldn't help but turn around and look around.

Suddenly, the sight before him made him gasp for breath, an immense fear pressing down on his chest, almost suffocating him!

The two companions who were still in the yard noticed Shunhui's strange behavior. They followed Shunhui's gaze and froze on the spot, their faces full of horror.

A dark figure stood motionless on the roof of Kongwang Dormitory, as if in deep meditation. Although the night was hazy, the reflection of the snow made it clear that it was a headless human shape!

Because Shunhui's dormitory was opposite Kongwang's, the dark figure now presented Shunhui with a commanding, oppressive gaze. Under this terrifying pressure, Shunhui's legs went weak, and he involuntarily backed away. This caused his heel to trip on the steps in front of the door, and his body fell backward.

The door was flung open by Shunhui's slam, and the "crack" sound jolted Shunhui awake, bringing his blank mind back to work.

"Help! Headless ghost! Headless ghost!" he shouted at the top of his lungs, his slightly distorted voice immediately tearing through the silent night sky.

The various dorm rooms reacted immediately. Some people turned on their lights, some jumped out of bed to check, while the timid ones stayed in their rooms, asking questions in trembling voices.

The dark shadow on the roof of the empty house also started to move. It seemed afraid of being exposed to the light and ran along the roof ridge towards the front yard, quickly disappearing into the darkness.

The first few monks to leave the room all witnessed this scene, and the eerie figure left them speechless.

The "headless ghost" that had been rumored for days finally appeared before everyone's eyes!

"Chase it! Catch 'it'!" Someone shouted first, and the fear suppressed in everyone's hearts suddenly erupted into a force of shared hatred. Several young and bold monks chased after it into the dark front yard.

At this moment, Kong Jing also arrived in the courtyard. He did not see the dark figure on the roof. After roughly understanding the situation, he immediately led the remaining monks to the front courtyard. There, he saw the young monks who had chased after them earlier standing in front of the guest rooms on the west side, all looking bewildered.

"What happened?" Kong Jing rushed forward and asked, "Where did 'it' go?"

The monks nearby remained silent, all turning their gazes to a tall man named Shunzhi.

Shunzhi was usually quite reckless in the temple and was often scolded by Shunping. Among the group of monks who rushed into the front yard just now, he was the one who ran in the lead and was the only one who saw the shadowy figure enter the front yard.

“I saw ‘it’ jump down from the roof, and then it seemed… it seemed to go into this room,” Shunzhi said hesitantly, pointing to the doorway of the guest room on the west side. After all, it was dark, and the scene he saw when he rushed into the front yard was blurry and not entirely certain.

The monks, who had been gathered in twos and threes, immediately dispersed nervously. The bolder ones formed a fan shape facing the door, while the timid ones hid behind others. Their eyes were all fixed on the tightly closed door, and the atmosphere in the courtyard seemed to freeze instantly.

Kong Jing stared blankly at the pitch-black, silent house, confusion and fear clashing within him. For him, nothing could be worse: the "headless ghost" that had been gripping everyone's hearts for days had finally appeared, and now it had infiltrated Luo Fei's house!

Shunzhi, who had been completely bewildered, now saw everyone's expressions and realized he was standing alone at the front, feeling a little scared. He turned his head uneasily and looked at Kongjing for help: "Abbot..." At this moment, everyone else also turned their gazes towards him.

Kong Jing took a deep breath and forced himself to take two steps forward. Although he felt just as anxious as everyone else, he knew he had a duty to step forward and deal with the situation.

"Director Luo, Director Luo?" Kong Jing stood two meters away from the door and called out twice into the house.

The room was completely silent, with no response.

Kong Jing took another step closer to the door. "Director Luo?" he called out, tilting his head and peering through the crack in the window, but he couldn't see anything.

A slight commotion arose among the monks, and a few of the bolder ones followed.

"Just push the door open and go in!" Shunzhi said gruffly. Kong Jing's actions seemed to have given him renewed courage. He walked at the front of the group, making a gesture as if he was about to force the door open.

Kong Jing stopped him and gestured for silence. Everyone held their breath, and they could faintly hear rustling sounds coming from inside the house, as if someone was walking towards the door.

The sound was soft, but each thud felt like a blow to everyone's heart. Everyone stared wide-eyed at the dark, imposing door.

With a soft creak, the door opened gently, the crack widening slowly like a monster's mouth. Kong Jing and Shun Zhi, who were standing at the front, involuntarily took a half step back.

A dark figure squeezed out through the crack in the door, and everyone breathed a sigh of relief when the faint light of the snow shone on his face.

The dark figure was Luo Fei. He was standing at the door, looking tired and giving the impression that he hadn't had a good rest.

"What do you need me for?" He looked at Kong Jing with a strange gaze, as if he wasn't asking a question, but rather trying to tell her something.

"That headless ghost has appeared again!" Kong Jing looked at Luo Fei with some doubt, then glanced into the room twice.

Luo Fei showed no surprise and continued to ask, "Did you see it?"

“No.” Kong Jing paused for a moment, then explained, “But many other people saw it.”

Kong Jing's words were echoed by many monks, and Shun Zhi even muttered without restraint, "I think the last thing I saw was that guy running into this room."

"Is that so?" Luo Fei pondered for a moment, then said calmly, "It's very likely that you've misread it."

Shunzhi stretched his neck somewhat defiantly, wanting to say something more, but Kongjing suddenly reached out to stop him: "I believe Luo Suo..."

If it's long, you must have misread it.

The sudden change in the static state of the void left his monks somewhat bewildered, and even Luo Fei raised his eyebrows in surprise.

"You can all go back now. I still have something to say to Director Luo." Kong Jing's expression was solemn, and her tone left no room for argument.

The monks exchanged helpless glances, hesitated for a moment, and finally dispersed. Shunzhi hadn't gone far when he turned back, still somewhat uneasy: "Abbot..."

"Go back." Kong Jing waved her hand firmly at him. "Stay inside, no one is allowed to come out."

After everyone else left, only Kong Jing and Luo Fei remained in the front yard, the quiet atmosphere almost suffocating.

"What's wrong? What did you find out?" Luo Fei broke the silence first.

Kong Jing looked at Luo Fei, and the fear he had been hiding finally showed in his eyes.

"Director Luo, there's a mirror in your room, why don't you go and look at yourself?" he said in a trembling voice.

Luo Fei was suddenly taken aback: "What do you mean?"

"Your...your eyes..."

"Eyes?" Luo Fei suddenly realized something, and his heart skipped a beat.

Kong Jing shook her head sadly: "Go and see for yourself."

Luo Fei's heart pounded. He forced himself to control his emotions, went back inside, turned on the light, and rushed to the mirror by the bedside to look at his own face.

Just as he had guessed, what appeared in the mirror was a pair of bloodshot eyes, so red that they looked like a ghost in the dim light.