pozo profundo

Capítulo 98

"No!" I finally shouted, slamming the wooden tablet down on the floor. Perhaps I was being too emotional, perhaps I was too cowardly. But they were my friends; I couldn't be so heartless. Even if she was just a seal that looked like a white cloud.

I looked up at Fang Lei. She didn't say anything, just opened her mouth, then turned her head away. I saw the rise and fall of her chest. Was it because she was upset about my being too sentimental, or was she also unable to bear doing this?

"Sigh~~~!" Bai Ling sighed softly and said, "Why are you Lin family members always so emotional?"

"You...you also know about the Lin family?" I blurted out.

"Heh, who do you think I am? Am I really just a sorceress?" Bai Ling laughed instead of getting angry, and said, "I am a guardian, guarding a seal that cannot be opened. After so many years, perhaps it's time for me to finish my work."

“Guardian seal? Then…” Fang Lei hesitated for a moment. These seals are often sealed for hundreds of years. Could it be another immortal monster?

"Think about it, I'm just a guardian. What's the point of living this long?" Bai Ling laughed self-deprecatingly and said, "You should already know about the four ancient families, right? After all this time, the Spirit Clan is probably only left with you and that girl Tian Niang!"

She actually called Tian Niang "girl"! Tian Niang must be hundreds of years old, so is she even older than Tian Niang?

"The Moro people have disappeared, and the Moonshadow Clan is trapped in a small mountain valley. As for the Yana Clan... Hmph!" Bai Ling sneered, "They have long been reduced to ordinary people. And this seal is meant to seal the Yana Clan."

"They've already become ordinary people, so why do we still need to seal them away?" Fang Lei asked curiously.

"Their power was sealed because they instigated the other three races to betray the Mother Goddess. This is the Mother Goddess's punishment for them." Bai Ling then sighed and said, "Bai Yun's true form is the princess of the Yana tribe. The princess's body was used to seal the power of the entire tribe. The princess also lost the right to be called human, and is merely a living seal. Lying in this coffin, she will receive endless entanglement and torment from the Underworld."

Using their own princess to carry out the seal?! What kind of mistake did their race commit that the Mother Goddess would use such a cruel and vicious method to seal them away? Was it merely because of betrayal? Since all the serving races betrayed the Mother Goddess, why was the punishment for the Anar race so severe?

"Then what about Baiyun? What is she?" I asked.

“That thing? It was an anomaly, an anomaly that even I didn’t anticipate. One night twenty years ago, something suddenly burst out of the princess’s body.” Bai Ling’s body trembled as she spoke, and it took her a long time to continue. “I don’t know if it was right or wrong not to kill it in time. But when I saw it, it was already about five or six years old when it emerged from the princess’s body. A little girl, so weak and helpless, and I couldn’t detect any spiritual power in it even with my magic. So… so my heart softened and I was confused. I thought, if she really just looks like an ordinary person, then let her continue to be an ordinary person! So I didn’t kill her, I kept her, and even treated her like my granddaughter.”

"Is she Baiyun?" I asked.

"Yes, it's Baiyun. She's a very good child." A kind and gentle smile appeared on Bai Ling's face as she said, "She always thought I was her biological grandmother. She loved me, took care of me, and finally made me feel a tiny bit of humanity in my long life. I thought I could live a simple life with Baiyun like this. Sometimes, when I was with her, I even forgot that I was an immortal monster and my responsibilities. But, fifteen years ago, this place was suddenly designated as a mental hospital. I was very anxious at the thought that this place might be discovered. Although I could live nearby and set up a barrier to prevent others from finding out during construction, what excuse would I have to live nearby after the hospital was built?" Who would want to live near a mental hospital? Besides, the barrier I set up was only effective near this place. In desperation, I had to resort to a last resort: to pretend to be a mental patient and move in. That way, I could cast spells near this place without arousing suspicion. Normally, the strange behavior of mental patients wouldn't be scrutinized closely. But this caused immense suffering for Baiyun! She always thought I was truly insane and wanted me to go to a better place for treatment. She was about ten years old then, living alone in an orphanage. Growing up all alone, sometimes I think, perhaps killing her back then would have been better for her. After all, she wouldn't have had to endure the scorn and bullying of others, nor would she have to live such a lonely and desolate life.

"Then why did you later send her to the Moonshadow Clan's village?" Fang Lei asked.

"That's because I suddenly realized that the princess is slowly regaining consciousness. That's a sign that the seal is about to break. Once the princess fully regains consciousness, the seal will end. I'm the guardian, I have to stop her!" Bai Ling said helplessly. "I don't have the power to strengthen the seal, but if I had the Moonshadow Clan's magical artifact, the Crystal Eye, I think there wouldn't be a problem. But I can't leave this mental hospital, so in desperation, I had to ask Bai Yun to search for it. When she came to visit me, I pretended to suddenly regain my senses and vaguely told her that as long as I had the Crystal Eye in Zuo Mu Village in ** Province, my illness could be cured. I told her that she must not be discovered by the people of Zuo Mu Village when she went there, and I also told her how to enter the Moonshadow Clan's barrier. Although she's a child who believes in science, she still knows I'm a sorceress, so she went with some skepticism. I didn't expect... sigh~~!"

"So that means you don't know who killed her either?" I asked hastily. I had thought the mystery of Baiyun's death would be solved, but it turned out to be all for naught.

"I've always wanted to know too, but I can guess..."

"Who is it?" Fang Lei and I asked almost simultaneously.

“It’s the one who helped the princess slowly regain consciousness and wanted to break the seal!” Bai Ling replied.

So we still don't know who it is? I sighed, a little disheartened. Who in this world could know so much about the existence of this seal? And who wants to break this seal? Could it be... a descendant of the Yana race? Wanting to regain their power?

"Could they be from the Yana tribe?" Fang Lei asked, and sure enough, we were on the same wavelength.

“Very likely, otherwise, who else would need to break the seal? This seal is meaningless to the non-Yana people!” Bai Ling replied.

Who is it? Who could be a descendant of the Anar? Is it merely to regain the power they possessed before their punishment? Having accepted the punishment, they should have foreseen their fate, so why betray their mother goddess?

Power? I gave a bitter smile. To me, the Lin family's power was always superfluous; I didn't want it. It seems fate always likes to play tricks on people. It lets you easily possess something, and you don't even have time to throw it away. It makes you suffer the pain of losing it, and then you start racking your brains to get it back. So, having something always makes it less valuable, while losing it makes it precious. Humans are nothing more than that.

“I haven’t found the Moonshadow Clan’s crystal eye yet, so this is the only last resort: to use this lid to buy some time,” Bai Ling said. “I hope this extra time will allow me to find the magic weapon that can suppress her again.”

"Why didn't you use this sooner?" Instead, you sent Baiyun to that dangerous place. Of course, I didn't say the last part out loud.

"This thing can only be used once, and I only have one. How could I bear to use it unless it's absolutely necessary?" Bai Ling rolled her eyes at me.

"You're still talking about me? You're dead now!" I rolled my eyes at her, but Fang Lei gave me a reproachful look in return.

"Wouldn't it be better if they were dead?" Bai Ling suddenly laughed and said, "I've only just realized that sometimes, a ghost's spiritual power is much stronger than a human's!"

"Do you know who killed you? What exactly happened in this hospital building?" Fang Lei asked.

"I was murdered! As for the rest..." Bai Ling shrugged helplessly at us and said, "I don't know!"

Good heavens! Is she some kind of immortal monster? She doesn't even know who killed her? I sighed helplessly. It seems that a person's intelligence is not proportional to their age.

Volume 3: Delicacies of Hell, Chapter 40: Snow Jade

Volume 3: Delicacies of Hell, Chapter 40: Snow Jade

"Put the lid on, if you don't want chaos to break out in the world." Bai Ling urged us on without giving me a chance to think it over.

"If you're so eager to build it, why don't you do it yourself?" I asked irritably.

“I could have done it myself, but alas…” Bai Ling said helplessly, “I am already a ghost. As long as I get within a meter of this coffin, I will be dragged to the underworld by these spirits and never be reincarnated.”

"Senior!" Fang Lei winked at me, signaling me to stop talking, and then asked Bai Ling, "What do you mean by 'the world is in chaos'?"

"The return of the Yana tribe will plunge the world into chaos. Their betrayal of the Mother Goddess back then stemmed from their own ambition. If they are allowed to regain their power now, and since the Mother Goddess is no longer there to restrain them, won't this world become theirs?" Bai Ling replied.

"Are there many people in the Yana tribe?" I asked. Since they lost their power as early as the Tang Dynasty, wouldn't they all become ordinary people? Moreover, if their tribe had such great ambitions, why didn't they unify the world before the Tang Dynasty? Could it be...? I remembered the Mother Goddess that Bai Ling mentioned. Could it be that the Mother Goddess still existed until the Tang Dynasty? Is that why the Yana tribe dared not act rashly?

"The Yana people have long since assimilated into various ethnic groups around the world. They were once the only people composed of diverse races. Although they are not currently aware of their Yana bloodline, their power will awaken once the princess awakens. At that time, how could the other three races, already withered and dying, possibly be a match for them?" Bai Ling gave a soft, cold laugh, sighing, "As the saying goes, what goes up must come down. The glory of the other three races did not last this long. On the contrary, the Yana people, stripped of their power, have flourished and multiplied on this land. It seems that sometimes, avoiding the limelight is the best way to survive!"

"So, you don't know how many people there are in the Yana tribe now?" Fang Lei asked anxiously.

“That’s right. After they lost their power, their people were scattered all over the world. The only thing I can tell you is that the people of the Yana tribe all have red patterns on their bodies, just like the ones on this coffin and on your body,” Bai Ling said, looking at me.

"You can see it!" I shouted. Even Fang Lei couldn't observe it with the naked eye, which shows that the immortal monster has some skill.

“Of course it is visible!” Bai Ling gave me a disdainful look and said, “But you are not from the Yana tribe. The dead Zhou Xiangrong was. She just grafted this seal onto you before she died.”

“What’s the point of grafting it onto him?” Fang Lei asked.

“I don’t know, but the red patterns on his body are very large, much larger than those of the average Yana person. I think they must have a unique purpose.” Bai Ling said, “You’d better put the lid back on right now. The princess’s consciousness is becoming more and more obvious.”

“Alright!” Fang Lei suddenly nodded, then looked at me and said, “Lin Xiao, I know you’re in a difficult position, but she’s not Bai Yun. I hope you understand that. People of the Yana tribe cannot awaken.”

"Why not?" I suddenly laughed, calmly looking at Fang Lei, then at Bai Ling floating in the air. Why not? Are they afraid of chaos? But who knows why the Yana tribe betrayed the Mother Goddess? Who can be sure what the Yana people will do after awakening? Perhaps, humans are inherently inclined to eliminate all uncertainty. I looked helplessly at Fang Lei, who seemed hesitant to speak. I knew my thinking might be too strange, too unconventional. In this society, in this world, should you act according to the conventional way of thinking?

I picked up the lid and said nothing more. Fang Lei and I worked together to place the lid on the white cloud. I saw the worry in Fang Lei's eyes, and the sadness in the white cloud's eyes. Perhaps I'm not a good man, making both women unhappy.

The moment the lid was closed, I felt a burning sensation in my eyes, as if tears were flowing, but they were evaporated by sorrow; you couldn't see my tears. I looked up at Fang Lei, but she had turned her head away. My hand, which had been touching the lid, remained for a long time before I let go. I seemed to hear the white clouds calling out, repeating themselves over and over again.

"Next, I need you to do one more thing for me," Bai Ling said. "Go back to Bai Yun's school and investigate someone."

"Who is it?" Fang Lei asked, seeing that I remained silent and just stared blankly at the floor.

“The person who set up this formation to harm me and all the patients in this hospital, I can only sense that he is at the school.” Bai Ling said, “Hurry up, you only have 7 days. If you haven’t found him by then, the magic power of this lid will be exhausted.”

"Is the only clue at the school?" Fang Lei asked anxiously. The school wasn't too big or too small, but how easy was it to find someone with no clues in seven days?

"That's all," Bai Ling replied helplessly.

Of course, that's not all. When I saw the red patterns on her body, I thought of someone—Su Qiao. Who else could be more suspicious? That necklace is the best evidence; I don't believe she just happened to have it! But for some reason, my sixth sense tells me I shouldn't tell Bai Ling about this. She always gives me such a strange feeling, even though she and Tian Niang are both old monsters. But at least Tian Niang has a sliver of inexplicable trust, while with Bai Ling, I always feel like she's hiding something from us.

Thinking of the necklace, I asked Bai Ling, "By the way, what was that necklace you gave me in the formation just now?"

“That’s a treasure of the Yana tribe,” Bai Ling replied. “A treasure on par with the Moonshadow tribe’s Crystal Eye. Every ancient spirit race has its own treasure. The Moonshadow tribe has the Crystal Eye, the Yana tribe has the Crimson Necklace, and the Moro tribe’s treasure is rather strange—it’s the blood of their people after they made a vow. As for your Lin family…”

Bai Ling gestured towards my hand with her lips and said, "The black jade ring is already on your hand."

Is this it? I looked at the black jade ring on my left hand; a petal on it was shimmering with an eerie light. This… is this the Lin family's treasure? No wonder it saved me from danger so many times. Does this thing recognize blood ties?

"Do you know how to use it?" Fang Lei asked, seemingly pleased.

"Hehe, why are you asking me, an outsider, about your own stuff?" Bai Ling laughed. Fang Lei and I were immediately deflated. It seemed we still had to figure it out ourselves.

"And another thing, young man," Bai Ling gave me a meaningful look, "you'd better keep a close eye on what's around your neck!"

"You know about this?" Since she might know the origin of this jade pendant, I naturally became respectful immediately. Perhaps, I could even find out the real cause of Yin Xue's death.

"Ordinary people call it the Seven Star Heavenly Dragon Pendant." Bai Ling closed her eyes and slowly said, "But its true name is Heavenly Snow. Heavenly Snow is the tears of the Mother Goddess."

Tianxue, Yinxue? I touched the jade pendant around my neck. Yinxue, is this your gift? Tianxue, the tears of the Mother Goddess. Tears shed because of betrayal? Isn't this proof of humanity's sins? Your life reminds me of humanity's sins, and isn't it also my sin?

"Sigh~~!" Bai Ling seemed to have aged a lot all of a sudden, her eyes filled with longing. Was she thinking of someone?

"Senior, it's snowing today..."

"Don't ask anymore," Bai Ling interrupted me, saying, "I can only tell you that this snow was once the Mother Goddess's beloved possession, and later it dripped into the Mother Goddess's tears and gained spiritual power. I can't say anything more. Things that have been forgotten by people don't need to be told again."

"But..." I'm not giving up, how can I give up? Since this Heavenly Snow is such a precious thing, how did Yin Xue obtain it back then? How did it end up in Yin Xue's hands?

"You'd better leave here quickly!" Bai Ling's figure began to fade slowly as she said, "Go to the school and find that person, but remember, you only have 7 days."

"Senior!" Fang Lei and I called out at the same time, but Bai Ling's figure had vanished without a trace, as if nothing had happened. The coffin, which had been emitting a red glow just moments before, had now completely darkened, lying quietly in the darkness. Who would know that beneath this coffin lay the princess of the Yana tribe, suffering torment and torture from the underworld?

Climbing out of the well, Fang Lei looked around and said, "Let's get out of here quickly while we still can."

"Didn't I promise Dr. Wang that I would help him find out why the hospital is haunted?" I didn't want to leave so easily.

"No need." Fang Lei shook her head and said, "I think the reason the hospital is haunted is because someone is secretly causing trouble, and Bai Ling said that this person is at the school. It would be more convenient for us to go back to the school to investigate."

"You have someone in mind?" I looked into Fang Lei's confident eyes, knowing I probably couldn't hide it from her.

"Didn't you already have someone in mind?" Fang Lei winked at me.

Me: "..." A helpless, bitter smile...

Looking up, I saw the red sun already rising on the horizon, a red so intense it was almost blood-red, and a faint, metallic scent lingered in the air. For some reason, I suddenly gazed westward, towards my childhood home. Hometown? A word I hadn't touched in so long, yet on this chilly morning, it flashed through my mind.

******************

While we were racking our brains over the murders at school in ** City, little did we know that a tremendous event was taking place in a small town in ** Province, my childhood hometown.

It was a typical morning when a figure appeared on a small road in the town. It was Peng Rong, the Chinese language teacher at the town's only middle school. He had just returned from visiting relatives in a big city and had chosen to travel overnight to get back to his students as soon as possible. Unfortunately, his car broke down at the next intersection. Since he figured the town wasn't far away anyway, the impatient Peng Rong decided to walk back.

Carrying such a large bag, Peng Rong stopped to catch his breath, feeling a bit strained. After all, he was quite old and had taught over a thousand students, but Peng Rong still loved teaching very much.

Adjusting his backpack, Peng Rong hurried along with his head down. There was no one else on the path, and the surrounding trees blocked some of the morning sunlight. The scent of dew mixed with the smell of grass lifted Peng Rong's spirits, but it seemed too quiet. Peng Rong looked around; there wasn't even a bird or an insect chirping. The silence was eerie, as if he had entered a deathly still world.

Suddenly, there was the sound of grass being moved, so clear in the otherwise silent surroundings. It wasn't an animal! That was Peng Rong's first thought. Then... was it a person?

Peng Rong looked around but saw no one. Upon closer inspection, he saw a figure in the grass not far away, a very thin figure, the figure of a girl.

"Who...who is it?" For some reason, Peng Rong felt a sense of fear. Although he was an absolute materialist, at that moment, he could hear his own heart pounding.

The morning sunlight suddenly dimmed, as if it were blocked by something. Peng Rong only saw one face, a face he knew well!

"Ah~~!" Peng Rong cried out and fell backward, his whole body trembling.

That's because he saw the face of one of his students, the face of one of his students twenty years ago.

"Yin...Yin...Yin Xue?" Peng Rong closed his eyes. That beautiful girl was the only pain in his teaching career—a model student who committed suicide, his once most prized student. Twenty years later, on this morning, she stood silently before him, her face and eyes utterly indifferent. As if pierced through, Peng Rong felt a chill run through his body. This couldn't possibly be a prank, because Yin Xue's death had become the most taboo topic in this small town. Who would be so bold as to play such a prank?

So, is she really back? Has she returned? Twenty years later?

Peng Rong cautiously opened his eyes and found that Yin Xue was standing quietly about five meters away from him, but she didn't come any closer. Peng Rong shakily got up from the ground, instinctively feeling that Yin Xue wouldn't hurt him.

Sure enough, Yin Xue slowly turned around and walked slowly towards the woods.