Pesadilla

Capítulo 11

"There are some things I'm not comfortable saying about Uncle Kongwang," Shunping said, his eyes fixed on Kong Jing, his words carrying a hidden meaning.

"The person is already dead, why are you still bringing this up?" Kong Jing said, slightly displeased. "Kong Wang loves to study things like gods, ghosts, and divination. If you don't like it, fine. But what does that have to do with what's happening now?"

“You’ve always turned a blind eye to his actions. You even kept it a secret that he came from the ‘Valley of Death’ in the back mountains. If he weren’t already dead, I’m afraid you would never have told anyone!”

"What does this have to do with anything?" Luo Fei couldn't help but wonder. Last time Kong Jing mentioned "Death Valley," Shunping and Shunde showed unusual expressions. Now that Shunping has brought it up again so seriously, there must be something hidden behind it.

Shunping turned to look at him and asked, "Director Luo, do you know the origin of the name 'Death Valley'?"

Luo Fei wasn't really sure about this. He guessed uncertainly, "Is it because the terrain is treacherous that there are more people who commit suicide or fall to their deaths?"

Shunping shook his head: "What you said is only a secondary aspect. The local mountain people all know a terrifying legend about 'Death Valley'."

"Oh?" Luo Fei focused his gaze on Shunping. "What legend?"

"Death Valley is bottomless, with hard rock on both sides. Over the centuries, countless people have lost their lives here. Some accidentally fell, while others jumped to their deaths. No matter the circumstances, no one who falls into the valley ever comes out alive, and their bodies are never found. However, in the history known to the mountain people, there was once an exception," Shunping recounted slowly.

"The exact time of that incident is impossible to verify, but it was probably two or three hundred years ago. A woodcutter had an accident while chopping wood and fell into this valley. Six or seven days passed without any news, and his family and relatives in the village all thought he was surely dead, and even held a funeral for him. But then, he returned. Although he was seriously injured and on the verge of death, he was still alive. This surprised and delighted not only his family but the entire village. However, they certainly didn't know at the time that this was actually the beginning of a terrifying nightmare."

Luo Fei frowned and listened quietly.

"On the day the woodcutter returned, a young man from the village left the mountains to make a living elsewhere. About a year later, when he returned to this remote village nestled in the mountains, he could hardly believe his eyes: all the dozens of people in the village had died!" At this point, Shunping took a deep breath, as if he too was suffocating under the weight of the heavy atmosphere.

Luo Fei's eyes twitched slightly. He had a premonition that something unexpected would happen, but the development of the story still brought a shock far beyond his expectations.

"What's particularly terrifying is that, because the village is located in a remote area, the bodies of the dead have remained undiscovered for a long time and have turned into skeletons!"

"What?!" Imagining the horrific scene that had been so tragic, even Luo Fei felt a chill run down his spine.

The story wasn't over yet. After a moment of silence, Shunping continued, "Later, the local official sent a coroner to the village to examine the remains. Apart from the woodcutter having a few fractures, the bones of the others were undamaged, and there were no signs of poisoning. Most of the villagers died in their own beds, as if evil spirits had suddenly descended at night and taken the lives of the entire village."

"With so many people dying all at once, haven't we found any valuable clues?" Luo Fei raised his question.

“In every villager’s home, there was a mark from ‘Death Valley’, which was the only clue.”

"'Death Valley' markings, what are those?" Luo Fei asked in confusion.

"It's a plant, or more precisely, a kind of grass. No one has ever seen this grass before. The young man remembers it clearly; it was brought out of 'Death Valley' by the woodcutter when he returned to the village a year ago."

"Something's not right here, is it?" Luo Fei couldn't help but frown. "A year has passed, those grasses should have withered long ago, how could he still recognize them?"

"Because this grass has a very unique shape," Shunping explained. "Its stems and leaves are unusually large, but it doesn't have fine leaves at the top, making it look like its head has been broken off."

"'Headless Grass'?" Luo Fei subconsciously gave it that name, while shifting his body uncomfortably.

"This grass appeared in every villager's home, and many of the corpses were even found clutching it tightly in their hands before they died. This inevitably led people to associate it with the deaths of the entire village. Later, people spread rumors that the woodcutter survived Death Valley because he had been possessed by the evil spirits of Death Valley. These evil spirits claimed the lives of everyone in the village, and this grass was the mark left by the evil spirits." After Shunping finished speaking, he turned to look at Kong Jing: "Abbot, you must have already heard what I've told you, right?"

Kong Jing nodded solemnly: "That's right, but it's just a legend after all. Kong Wang did go to 'Death Valley,' but more than 20 years have passed, and we're all still alive and well, aren't we?"

“But you don’t know, Kong Wang went to ‘Death Valley’ again more than 10 days ago, and he brought these back!” Shunping said, placing what he was holding on the table. It was a bundle wrapped in a long black robe, and when the robe was opened, it revealed a bunch of lush, green plants inside.

"Did you see that?" Shunping's face turned grim and terrifying. "This is the legendary mark of the evil spirit, the headless grass from 'Death Valley'!"

Sure enough, the strange shapes of these plants were exactly as Shunping had described. They appeared to have been picked recently, their large stems and leaves still displaying vigorous vitality. Due to the influence of that terrifying legend, this vitality gleamed with an evil light.

"Where...where did you find these things?" Kong Jing stared at the plants, a chill running down her spine.

“In the empty room. We found his body under the window when we carried it back into the room just now,” Shunping said, glancing at Luo Fei.

Luo Fei understood what he meant and nodded: "That's right, I saw it yesterday when I was investigating the scene in the house. But at that time I didn't know its origin and those terrible legends."

"When did Kong Wang go to 'Death Valley' recently? How do you know?" Kong Jing asked Shunping.

"It was the day before he went into seclusion. Someone saw him leave the temple early in the morning and head towards the valley behind the mountain, not returning until the afternoon. I didn't think much of it at first, but now that the facts are confirmed, he must have gone to 'Death Valley'!"

After answering Kong Jing's question, Shunping continued, "After Kong Wang returned from 'Death Valley,' he locked himself in his room and never went out. Even when Shunde brought him food, he had to pass it in through the window, so he never saw his face. He said he was in seclusion to cultivate Zen, but is this necessary for cultivating Zen? I had my suspicions for a long time, but I didn't want to interfere because of his seniority."

"So what do you think he was doing in the house?" Luo Fei asked thoughtfully.

“I don’t know either.” Shunping shook his head, but then added, “I guess it might be some kind of witchcraft.”

"Witchcraft?" Luo Fei squinted, puzzled.

“Kong Wang is very knowledgeable about ghosts and spirits,” Shunping explained. “When someone dies in a mountain village, people often ask him to come over and perform rituals.”

Luo Fei gave a noncommittal "Oh": "That's just a custom in backward areas! How could you think he was doing these absurd things when he was alone in the house?"

"Of course, there's a reason I'm making this guess. Shunde once reported something to me: a few nights ago, he went to relieve himself behind the temple and saw smoke rising from the small house where Kongwang used to live. Then, a strange 'headless figure' appeared in the smoke!"

Luo Fei and Kong Jing exchanged a glance and said, "We already know this. What do you think its connection is to Kong Wang's seclusion?"

"Oh? Shunde told you too?" Shunping seemed a little surprised. After a pause, he continued, "At first, I thought Shunde was just timid and scared, so he had a misconception. But later, when I went to check the hut, I found that things were a bit strange."

"You mean the stove under that window?" Luo Fei was starting to look at Shunping with new respect. This man was trying to manipulate the situation in the temple, and he did have some ability.

“That’s right. The smoke must have come from the furnace. And I also found some unburnt residue in the furnace that day, and I kept it.”

"What is that?" Luo Fei leaned forward excitedly. He hadn't found anything himself; it turned out someone had gotten there first.

“Here it is.” Shunping took out a palm-sized cloth bag wrapped in a handkerchief, opened it, and placed it on the table. “I just found out what this is.”

It was a leaf. Although the edges were charred, the overall shape was still relatively well preserved.

"Headless grass!" Luo Fei and Kong Jing exclaimed at the same time.

"Could it be that Kong Wang is secretly roasting headless grass in the hut?" Luo Fei immediately made the connection. "What is he doing?"

Shunping did not answer directly, but said in a calm voice, "In the legends of the mountain people, the headless grass grows so plumply because it absorbs the spirits of the dead in the valley. Each leaf is attached to a wronged soul. And many of those who fell off the cliff had their heads smashed and became headless corpses."

Thinking of the smoke from burning headless grass, and the eerie "headless figure" appearing in the smoke... everyone knew what Shunping's words were implying, and the room fell silent for a moment.

Before they knew it, the sky was already beginning to lighten. Shunping opened the window and looked out.

"The snow has stopped." He stood there, staring blankly at the trail of footprints in front of Kongwang's house. Now, they were just faint marks on the snow.

"Huang Deming would kill someone? I simply can't believe it!" Village Chief Liu shook his large head, his expression incredulous. "When he was alive, he was known throughout the village as an honest man. He never caused trouble, and even if someone bullied him, he wouldn't utter a sound. His wife was also known for her kind heart; who among the nearby temples offered incense as diligently as she? If they committed murder, there must have been a compelling reason. Captain Zhou, you absolutely must get to the bottom of this!" He even patted his chest excitedly at the end, "If you can't believe it, the entire village will vouch for them!"

Zhou Ping knew that there must be something hidden in such a case, but what he was more concerned about and surprised about now was: if Wu Jianfei was really killed by Huang Deming more than 20 years ago, as Zhou Xiuying said, then how could the monk Kongwang who died in Kumu Temple yesterday be explained?

He immediately took Zhou Xiuying to the inner room and questioned her privately.

Zhou Xiuying, having revealed a secret hidden in her heart for many years, seemed to find relief, and her tense emotions began to stabilize. Sitting before Zhou Ping, she rambled on in a weary, world-weary tone: "My husband and I have had our lives ruined by this. For over 20 years, I don't know how many incense sticks I've burned, how many vows I've made, but the Bodhisattva has never forgiven us. I gave birth to two children, both of whom died of illness before their first birthday. After that, I dared not have any more children; those children would carry the burden of our sins! If my children had survived, they would be married and starting families by now."

Zhou Ping listened to these useless narrations and licked his lips helplessly, but seeing the other person's pitiful appearance, he couldn't bear to interrupt.

Zhou Xiuying sighed, her heart still overflowing with bitterness: "Since that incident, my husband has been cautious in everything he does, and has always been kind. No matter the situation, he has never uttered a harsh word to anyone. Sometimes we were even happy when he suffered some losses, thinking it was a punishment from the Bodhisattva, a way to lessen our sins. But what's the use? The retribution that was meant to come will eventually come. So many cars have been driving around on the roads in and around the city for so many years. Who has ever encountered such bad luck? On the day my husband died, I was heartbroken, but I also felt relieved of the burden I had carried for half my life. The Bodhisattva finally gave us an answer, letting him pay with his life. This way, we won't have to suffer anymore in the underworld. When my husband was alive, we were always worried about the police coming to our door. After he died, I was no longer afraid. I waited at home, knowing that you would eventually come. We had deceived someone's child before, and I couldn't die in peace without giving an explanation."

Zhou Ping patiently listened to her finish speaking, and finally had a chance to ask, "What exactly happened? Why did you kill him?"

“Sigh, I’ve come to terms with it now. It was all destined.” Zhou Xiuying pursed her lips, as if she were giving a bitter smile. “That man lived in our house and had food and drink. Who would have thought that he would secretly leave and fall into the pit that my husband dug?”

"A trap?" Zhou Ping interjected. "What's that?"

"These are traps that we mountain people dig to catch wild boars, leopards, and other wild animals. They are usually two or three meters deep, and several sharpened bamboo poles are stuck at the bottom. They were very common in the old days, but now there are fewer wild animals in the mountains, and basically no one digs these anymore."

"Where did you dig that trap in your house? How did it end up trapping Wu Jianfei—the one who lives in your house?"

Zhou Xiuying rolled her eyes as if recalling: "Hmm... There was a vacant lot behind my house where we planted some sorghum. The trap was dug next to the sorghum field to prevent wild boars from stealing the crops. We marked it so that people from the mountains would know when they got nearby. That man didn't know any of this. He was running around aimlessly at night and somehow fell in."

"Hmm, what was he planning to do out at night?" Zhou Ping didn't want to overlook any suspicious detail.

“I told you, he wanted to leave. He even packed his bags, there’s no mistake. I don’t know what we did to wrong him, he didn’t even say goodbye, and this happened! The next day at dawn, my husband found him in the pit. By then he couldn’t speak, a bamboo shuttle had pierced through his waist, and he was bleeding a lot.” Even though many years have passed, Zhou Xiuying’s face still showed pity when she thought of the scene.

"And then? What did you do?"

“At first, we wanted to rescue him. But I was so scared that my limbs went weak and I couldn't muster any strength. My husband told me to go back inside and stay, saying he could handle it by himself. I didn't think much of it and just listened to him.” Zhou Xiuying paused, then regretfully patted the back of her hand. “If I had been more careful then and stayed by my husband's side, I definitely wouldn't have let him do that. My husband would have listened to me!”

"What...did your man do?" Zhou Ping asked, already having a vague premonition of what might happen next.

Zhou Xiuying replied softly, "After a long time, my husband returned to the house. He was covered in dirt, looking like a wooden doll, completely lifeless, staring blankly at me. I felt uneasy under his gaze and quickly asked him what was wrong. After asking him many times, he finally came to his senses and said, 'I buried that man.'"

"You mean, buried alive?"

Zhou Xiuying nodded, closing her eyes in anguish, her wrinkled face betraying her unease and guilt. After a moment of silence, she sighed deeply and murmured, "That man won't survive—even if we rescued him, he wouldn't live. If he dies in our house, it'll be impossible to explain… He has descendants, how will we face them? But to bury him alive, what a sin, what a sin… My husband was out of his mind for a moment, that's why he did something so damning…"

As Zhou Xiuying spoke, she looked at Zhou Ping with pleading eyes. This was the first time in so many years that she had revealed a secret she had kept hidden for half her life, and she didn't want to offer any explanations. She only hoped that others could understand their difficult situation at the time and say a few words of comfort, so that she could be somewhat relieved of the guilt she had carried for so long.

Zhou Ping seemed unconcerned about any of this. He scratched his forehead, as if deep in thought, and then asked, "Are you sure your man buried Wu Jianfei alive with his own hands? I mean, did you witness it?"

Zhou Xiuying was taken aback by the question, and looked at Zhou Ping with confusion. She said, "I only saw the filled-in pit. If it wasn't my husband who buried it, who else could it be? My husband also told me that he shoveled up a few scoops of soil and first splashed it on the man's face. The man's face was covered, and he couldn't move anywhere else, only blinking. As he blinked, the soil on his eyelids was lifted, and a pair of eyes emerged from the soil, staring intently at my husband. My husband was terrified by his gaze and frantically filled the pit with soil until the man was completely buried... Later, my husband couldn't sleep well for half a year, always feeling that those eyes were still staring at him..."

"So you're saying you didn't witness Wu Jianfei's death? Is it possible that Huang Deming didn't seal the pit properly in the chaos, and that Wu Jianfei's injuries weren't as serious as you thought? He later climbed out of the pit on his own, and you didn't know?"

Zhou Xiuying shook her head blankly: "How is that possible? With so much soil buried on top, how could he climb out? Unless he turned into a ghost."

"Can you still find the exact location of that pit from back then?"

“I can find it. Every year on the anniversary of our death, I go to that place to burn incense, hoping to atone for our sins. But after all these years, when retribution comes, we still can’t escape it.”

Zhou Ping grunted in agreement and stood up from his chair: "You'll come with me to the scene now to identify the location."

Before arriving at the scene, Zhou Ping first called the municipal bureau from the village chief's office to report the unexpected resurfacing of this old case and request support from forensic experts and other relevant personnel. Meanwhile, Village Chief Liu used a loudspeaker to gather four strong young men, equipped them with shovels and picks, and prepared to dig a hole to search for the body.

After everything was settled, Zhou Ping led the young men to the ravine where Zhou Xiuying's home was located, while Village Chief Liu waited in his office for backup from the Public Security Bureau.

Half an hour later, Zhou Ping and his group arrived at their destination. The valley was about 20 acres in size, with four families living scattered around it. Zhou Xiuying's house was located in the north corner of the valley, and the nearest neighbor was about 30 meters away.

“This is it.” Zhou Xiuying walked to a spot about 10 meters behind the house and pointed to the ground beneath her feet.

Zhou Ping observed the terrain behind the house. The location Zhou Xiuying pointed to was very close to the mountains and forests, and far away from other houses. It was the most suitable place to dig a trap for hunting, and ordinary people would not go there.

But why did Wu Jianfei choose this direction? Zhou Ping pondered, perhaps it would be more reasonable to explain it as Wu Jianfei wanting to leave quietly without being discovered.

"Start digging!" Zhou Ping ordered, and the young men swung their pickaxes at the frozen, hard ground.

Although it had just snowed, the soil wasn't too frozen yet. After digging through 10 centimeters of the topsoil, the soil underneath was much softer, and the young men were working hard, so the progress wasn't too slow.

The commotion attracted several other villagers living in the valley. They curiously strolled over, glanced at the pit, and then surrounded Zhou Xiuying, whispering questions to her. Zhou Xiuying stared intently at the ever-growing pit in front of her, her face pale, and remained silent.

When the pit was about 1 meter deep, Zhou Ping suddenly signaled the young men to stop, and then gently jumped into the pit himself. The villagers immediately gathered around, staring wide-eyed.

In the center of the pit, a hard, grayish-white protrusion appeared. Zhou Ping used his hands to dig away some of the soil around the protrusion, and the thing was sharp and smooth; it turned out to be a section of bamboo shuttle head.

The villagers watching were somewhat disappointed, but Zhou Xiuying's lips trembled slightly. In her memory, Wu Jianfei had been killed by this very bamboo shuttle piercing his chest.

Zhou Ping stood up and reminded the young men to be careful and continue digging. As the bamboo pole emerged from the soil, its length increased, reaching about 20 centimeters. Then, not far from the pole, a section of grayish-white hard object appeared in the soil. After removing the surrounding topsoil, the object was revealed in its entirety: a complete human rib.

The villagers noticed something amiss and began to stir. They whispered among themselves while giving the fearful and uneasy Zhou Xiuying suspicious looks.

The skeleton before him confirmed Zhou Xiuying's words. Zhou Ping sniffed, somewhat bewildered; he had encountered a man who had died twice.

At this moment, the villagers by the ditch stirred again, all turning their gaze toward the entrance to the ravine.

Zhou Ping climbed onto the ground and saw Village Chief Liu leading reinforcements of police officers toward them. The person following closely behind the village chief looked radiant; it was none other than Xu Lijie.

Zhou Ping went up to him, looking somewhat surprised: "Why are you here too?"

"Why can't I come?" Xu Lijie rolled her eyes at him. "I was one of the first people in the bureau to get involved in this case. Who among you knows more about Wu Jianfei's file than me?"