Flowers of the Departed Souls - Chapter 18

Zhong Dan’s body was exhumed, but she was buried in a strange posture beneath a large banyan tree: prostrate, with her back bowed, hands placed on her abdomen, and knees bent.

This posture reminded Kelou of an archaeological report, specifically Tomb No. 24 excavated from the Qiemo County Qungouruk ancient tomb complex in Xinjiang, which contained a similarly strange body in this flexed position. Archaeologists believed that this flexed-knee burial was a unique funerary custom of a certain ethnic group. When a person is born, they are also in a flexed position in the womb, and after death, they return to that initial state, allowing them to smoothly enter heaven. In China, flexed-knee burials were popular in the Eastern Zhou period of the Neolithic Age. This custom has a very long history; shortly after the deceased passed away, while their limbs were still pliable, family members would bind their hands and feet before burial.

However, what puzzled Kelou was why Ge Jianliang, after his wife’s death, insisted on burying her in such a posture. To achieve the bend, her feet and hands were tied, indicating that Ge Jianliang had put in a great deal of effort. The fact that Ge Jianliang shaped such a terrifying corpse in this manner showed that his love for his wife was extraordinarily deep. Or, it carried a deeper, hidden meaning. Was it to help his wife’s soul smoothly enter heaven?

The still-shaken Luo Xiaofeng ran over. Seeing the bizarre corpse, she screamed again. Luo Bozi quickly asked, “Where did you run off to? What happened?”

“Birds, many birds are dead. They’re buried in the same pit.”

Kelou and Xiao Zhao exchanged glances, then the three followed Xiaofeng to the bird tomb. They saw a circular pit filled with countless dried bird corpses, emitting a nauseating stench.

“How can there be so many dead birds?”

“No wonder! I was wondering where those birds went. Turns out they were all buried.” Luo Bozi’s eyes widened as he looked at the birds. Xiao Zhao picked up a bird corpse. “It has a small hole in its body.”

“Blood-sucking? Vampires? Could it be those Departed Soul Flowers again?” Kelou murmured.

“I don’t think it’s that simple. These birds might have been injected with something poisonous and died from that. Let’s take one back for testing. If it were just the Departed Soul Flowers sucking their blood dry, the flowers wouldn’t have buried them so neatly and systematically. Look at their posture: their heads are up, and their wings are curled in front of their bodies like two hands, in a semi-bowed posture.”

“You mean, it’s exactly the same as Zhong Dan’s burial posture?”

“Yes, both are in a semi-flexed posture. This should be like an ancient funerary custom, consistent with Zhong Dan’s.”

“You mean, the person who buried Zhong Dan and the person who buried these small birds are the same person?”

“I think that possibility is quite high. If not the same person, then at least, they are of the same type of person, sharing common funerary customs, or perhaps rituals.”

Kelou felt increasingly that this case was not as simple as he initially thought, and it involved such mind-boggling incidents: strange deaths, terrifying Departed Soul Flowers, the eerie Illusion Cliff, and this burial method steeped in religious rituals. All of it far exceeded his initial estimations. The level of difficulty was absolutely no less than the bird-headed human tattoo serial murder case happening in the city. He could even feel that the enemy was right there, watching their every move, and if there was any disturbance, the enemy would be one step ahead of them.

Kelou said to Luo Xiaofeng and Luo Bozi, “Have you noticed any people acting strangely in the village recently, or any strange phenomena? If so, please tell me in time. I might be staying in the village for a while, and I’ll be staying at the inn.”

Luo Xiaofeng suddenly cried out “No!” startling them. “You’d better not stay here for now. All the people who have died in the village recently were staying at the inn. You know, I don’t even dare to go in there at night anymore; I go home to sleep. I think it’s better if you go back first.”

Yes, why hadn’t Kelou thought of this obvious problem? Indeed, all the deceased were guests at this inn. This further fueled Kelou’s determination to get to the bottom of it. “Don’t say another word. I’ve already decided to stay here. I won’t short you on the room rent.”

Xiao Zhao shouted, “I’ll stay here too, Kelou. We need to get to the bottom of this.”

Kelou thought for a moment. “Old man still needs you. I also don’t know how long I’ll stay here. Once the bodies here are processed, it’s better for you to go back first; they need you there too. There’s no signal here. Let’s go back to the inn to make calls, report on our work, and ask the old man for instructions.”

After speaking, a few people placed Zhong Dan’s body into a large plastic bag and carried it away. They planned to take both Zhong Dan’s and Ge Jianliang’s bodies back for appraisal.

Returning to the inn, they found no one inside. Luo Xiaofeng opened the door to that room. Ge Jianliang’s body was still there, but it was like a desiccated corpse that had been buried in sandstorms for thousands of years. Around his body were reddish-brown powders. What was going on? Where did those people go?

Kelou was about to call out to them when Xiao Jiang and his team returned. “Chi Ziming attempted suicide by taking pills. We found him at the staircase. Thankfully, we rescued him in time. He’s fine now.”

Luo Xiaofeng’s face turned pale. “Where is he now?”

“He’s still at the clinic. He’s quite weak, just had his stomach pumped, and is on an IV drip. He’s not in any serious condition; he should be able to leave tomorrow.”

“I’ll go see him.”

“Hey, wait, I’m coming too.” Kelou turned to his colleagues. “You guys take the bodies back and leave first. I’m staying here first; I need to get to the bottom of this. You report the situation here, and I’ll call the old man later. You can go.”

Xiao Jiang and his team patted Kelou’s shoulder. “This small village feels pretty spooky. Be careful yourself. If anything happens, call us immediately. We’ll come whenever you need us.”

Kelou nodded. “Tell Guangming, don’t blame me for taking the initiative.”

“Don’t worry.”

Kelou watched their retreating figures, then turned to Xiaofeng. “Take me to the clinic.”

So, he, Xiaofeng, and Luo Bozi went to the clinic. Chi Ziming was already out of danger. He looked thinner than when Kelou first saw him. Kelou looked at him, silent for a long time. “You should leave this place. Live a good life. Don’t seek death. There are still many beautiful things in life.”

Chi Ziming said as if talking to himself, “I can’t turn back now.”

“Why?”

Chi Ziming’s eyes suddenly sparkled. “I want to know what kind of unnatural death awaits me.”

Kelou patted his shoulder. “If you think everyone staying at the inn will die unnaturally, then, perhaps, I’m next.”

Chi Ziming looked at him in confusion. Kelou smiled. “I’m also preparing to stay here, right next door to you. Oh, I also need to call my old man Guangming. There should be a landline here, right?”

Xiaofeng pointed outside. “Yes, you can ask the doctor.”

Kelou then went to the front desk outside to make a call. But Guangming’s phone was off, which puzzled him. Guangming’s phone was never off, unless the battery died. Had the battery died? So he called the station. No one answered in the office, so he called other colleagues. They said he had been out for a while and hadn’t returned, and they couldn’t find him. No one answered at his home either.

At this moment, a deeply ominous feeling settled in Kelou’s heart.