Flowers of the Departed Souls - Chapter 30

“How are you here? We were looking for you everywhere. Where’s Kelou?” Chi Ziming asked anxiously the moment he saw Luo Bozi. Luo Xiaofeng, however, noticed his injuries. “Uncle Luo, are you hurt?”

Luo Bozi’s arm was bleeding, and he looked disheveled, as if he had been through a desperate struggle. Chi Ziming sensed trouble. He helped Luo Bozi sit on a rock, rolled up his sleeve, and saw a large wound. He tore off his own shirt and carefully bandaged Luo Bozi. “Uncle Luo, what exactly happened? Where’s Kelou?”

Luo Bozi sighed. “He was carried away by the carrion vultures. His fate is unknown. We had just entered the cave when we were attacked by carrion vultures. Kelou wounded one vulture, which enraged them, and there were dozens of vultures. In the melee, a few masked figures appeared. I was hit hard on the head and passed out. When I woke up, I found myself here, but Kelou was gone…”

“Masked figures? What do we do then? How do we find him?”

“Shouldn’t we go back and report to the police first? Let the police handle it?”

“No, we can’t.” The thought of that tomb threw Chi Ziming into utter disarray. Yes, if the police discovered that tomb, what about Ke’er? Her jade artifacts, and her body, might all become objects of study for archaeologists. Moreover, if frequently opened, her flesh would easily decay, and then…

“Then what do we do? We’re not a match for those carrion vultures, nor for my possibly fake great-aunt.”

“Great-aunt?” Luo Bozi asked, puzzled.

“Yes, she’s not my grandma at all. She’s my grandma’s sister, a cruel and ruthless old woman. My grandma might have fallen victim to her.”

Hearing Luo Xiaofeng say this, Chi Ziming became even more confused. Why did Ke’er’s great-aunt know the secret entrance to that tomb, and why was she guarding it outside? She must know the secret within, and also that Ke’er’s body was there. Was she related to Ke’er? And why didn’t he encounter the carrion vultures when he went in? Were they just sleeping?

At this moment, Luo Bozi spoke. “Oh, no wonder. I always felt your grandma wasn’t quite herself lately, and she often gave evasive answers. I thought she was just getting confused with age.”

Yes, why was she impersonating Luo Xiaofeng’s grandmother, especially since they hadn’t seen each other for decades? Grandma Luo rarely mentioned her sister in front of Xiaofeng. In Luo Xiaofeng’s memory, she only vaguely remembered having a great-aunt, but she had never actually met her. But why, at this critical juncture, did she appear and impersonate Grandma? Where did she take Xiaofeng’s grandma? Or why would she kill her own older sister? And was her appearance related to the bizarre murder cases at the inn?

Chi Ziming’s mind was filled with more and more questions, and these doubts pressed upon him, almost suffocating him. But he also felt that they were tightly interconnected, intricately intertwined, and he couldn’t untie any of the knots. And now Kelou’s fate was unknown, all of which made him extremely vexed. Sometimes he truly wanted to abandon everything and leave this incredibly eerie place, but he also told himself he couldn’t. Ke’er’s life and death, the tragic deaths of Xia Yimin and the others, and Kelou’s unknown fate. Originally, he could have just left, and he had no responsibility to help them, but he knew he couldn’t do that. Otherwise, his heart would never find peace. And the thought that Cai Yilian might need him even more right now made him extremely agitated. He wished the killer, who called himself Thanatos, the God of Death, would jump out immediately and give him a bullet or a hard punch, whether he lived or died, at least it would be quick.

“What do we do now?” Luo Xiaofeng looked at Chi Ziming helplessly. After experiencing so many things, she had psychologically become dependent on him.

Chi Ziming looked at Luo Bozi, who calmly said, “How about this: let’s go back first. I’ll gather more villagers, and we’ll go look for Kelou in the cave.”

On the way back, everyone was silent. The sun in the sky was blazing, but Chi Ziming’s mind felt somewhat hazy, making him feel that everything he experienced in the cave was just a dream, a dark, boundless, illusory play that would only appear in movies or novels, with no connection to reality.

When Chi Ziming arrived at the inn, he suddenly remembered that terrifying question again, the one about Kelou. Why, among the four of them, was Kelou the only one who met with an accident, while the other three were safe? Yes, the inn. Luo Bozi and Luo Xiaofeng were not guests, so among them, only he and Kelou could have had an accident.

But originally, he should have been the one to have an accident, not Kelou.

Chi Ziming felt extremely annoyed. He shouldn’t have let Kelou stay here. His worst fears had now come true. Why were all the victims guests? Why was he the last one? He now felt that this inn was the strangest place in the village, and everyone here began to make him distrustful.

Yes, why didn’t anything happen to Luo Xiaofeng? She always had that innocent expression. And she should know more or less about the inn’s secret, but she appeared completely oblivious. Was that possible? He also didn’t know why those two guests committed suicide. And Zhong Dan’s death occurred in the short interval when Ge Jianliang was out. In such a short time, and “Thanatos” even left a message outside the window. This indicated that this person, besides always being in the inn, or rather, lurking in the inn, was extremely familiar with the inn and very likely possessed the inn’s keys. And her strange grandmother, perhaps, it was all their doing. And Luo Bozi, he was also highly suspicious. He always appeared whenever something happened, and this time, when Kelou disappeared, he was at the scene.

The more Chi Ziming thought about it, the colder he felt. He sensed this was a terrifying conspiracy. Everyone could be a sharp-toothed, sharp-clawed devil who killed without blinking, and everyone who came to Luoyang Village could be their plaything, their captive, their victim. They enjoyed playing this game tirelessly.

So? What should he do? Escape, or let them toy with him? In anxiety and extreme exhaustion, Chi Ziming drifted off to sleep. In his dream, he dreamt of being bound by a group of barely clothed people. They held spears, and their faces and bodies were painted with strange patterns, like Native Americans from a primitive tribe. He also saw a few familiar faces: Luo Xiaofeng, Luo Bozi, and Luo Yifu. They were also strangely dressed, mixed among them, making faces and mocking him. They carried him away. He shouted, “Put me down!”—but they completely ignored him, or perhaps they didn’t understand his language.

In the distance, he saw a wooden frame ahead, with much dry straw and wood blocks underneath. Kelou was tied to it, covered in injuries, looking already at death’s door. He screamed Kelou’s name. Kelou barely opened his eyes, looking at him with a desperate gaze.

At this moment, he heard these people shouting: “Burn these outsiders! Burn them! Burn them! Long live Luoyang Village! Long, long live!”

He and Kelou were hoisted together. At this point, the fire below was already lit. He felt the scorching heat wave sweeping over his entire body. In a daze, he saw a group of people surrounding a woman wearing a flower crown. And that woman was none other than Cai Yilian, whom he had longed for. She just smiled at him, watching him slowly roast until he became a charred piece of meat…

No, no, it’s not like this… He struggled. At this moment, he felt someone vigorously shaking him. “Brother Ziming, wake up—”

He struggled to open his eyes and found himself lying on the inn bed. Luo Xiaofeng was looking at him with concern. He sighed in relief internally. Thankfully, it was just a dream.

Luo Xiaofeng touched his forehead. “You’re burning up, Brother Ziming. You have a fever. You must have had a nightmare just now, calling out Kelou’s name, and some ‘Lian’ name.” She went to get a cold towel to cool him down.

Chi Ziming looked at her retreating figure and then remembered that terrifying dream again. Why was she in his room? Was it to monitor him? But she didn’t seem to have any ulterior motives. Sigh, was he too paranoid? To the point where he no longer trusted anyone.

He touched his own forehead. It really was a bit hot, and his whole body felt weak and limp. Ever since he came out of that Vulture’s Lair, he had felt unwell. Was it because of the heavy Yin energy inside, or poor ventilation leading to excessive inhalation of carbon dioxide and murky mineral gases, causing oxygen deprivation and poisoning? Or was it due to catching a cold and being overly fatigued? But why were Luo Xiaofeng and Luo Bozi fine? Was it his turn now? With an even more unexpected method of death? Xia Yimin and Zhong Dan were stabbed after their eyes were gouged out, Ge Jianliang died from blood loss entangled by Departed Soul Flowers, and Kelou was probably devoured by carrion vultures or under the masked person’s claw, his body likely never to be found. So, what about him?

At this thought, he suddenly felt a renewed shiver of cold.

At this moment, Luo Xiaofeng came back with a towel and placed it on his forehead. “I’ll go get you some fever medicine.”

“No.” Chi Ziming grabbed her hand. “I’m fine. Is there any news about Kelou?”

Luo Xiaofeng shook her head. “Luo Bozi and the villagers went to look for him. You know, ever since you came to this inn, this village hasn’t known peace.”

Chi Ziming almost cried out. What? So you’ve been suspecting me all this time? But he suppressed the muffled anger in his heart, making his tone sound a bit softer. “You think their deaths are related to me?”

Luo Xiaofeng shook her head, a little embarrassed. “I originally thought so. Because all these incidents happened after you arrived, no one could rule out that suspicion. And they all happened in the same inn. Officer Lu also thought so.”

Chi Ziming now lost some control. “Why would I harm them? What profit would I gain? Is it worth it? Do I have a motive for murder? Only an idiot would openly kill the people around them one by one.” He had thought a lot but never imagined he would become the object of suspicion.

“Calm down, Brother Ziming. No matter what others think, I believe you. Although this suspicion isn’t completely unreasonable, because on the very first night you checked in, Xia Yimin died, then Zhong Dan, then Ge Jianliang. And they weren’t familiar with each other before, so there shouldn’t have been any connection. So it’s natural to suspect you. Otherwise, why did they all die, and only you are still alive?”

Chi Ziming had never known her thoughts until now. So that was it. No wonder Luo Xiaofeng seemed to harbor some kind of hostility towards him at first, or some kind of fear. It turned out she had always treated him as a terrifying suspect. But, just because she suspects me, does that absolve her of suspicion?

Luo Xiaofeng seemed to guess his thoughts and continued, “I also know that the police, and you, also suspected me. This is normal. Everyone in the inn is a suspect; it’s not strange. But yesterday, you and I were together, and then Kelou had an accident, and Kelou’s current identity is not just a police officer, but also a guest here. So, who do you think is the most suspicious person now?”

“You mean—Luo Bozi?”

“Yes. Let’s see if he can find Kelou, and that old woman. She took me to the cave yesterday, and I even saw her being very affectionate with those carrion vultures. And she even eats rotten corpses like those carrion vultures. It’s too terrifying and disgusting. Only someone with a psychologically pathological mind would do that, or perhaps, she’s simply not human.”

At this point, Luo Xiaofeng herself shivered. The thought of having lived with such a person made her feel incredibly uneasy. But she truly didn’t know what other terrifying secrets this old woman might have. When she was seven, her parents left the village, and she began to live with her grandma. Perhaps it was because she was more pitiful that Grandma loved her more than Luo Yifu and Luo Xiaojie. Her uncle asked them to move in with him, but Luo Yifu’s mother disagreed because their marriage had been strongly opposed by her grandparents, so there was always resentment in her heart. Grandma also liked living quietly with Luo Xiaofeng, so they didn’t go. But Luo Yifu and Luo Xiaojie would still often come to play with her, and their feelings for each other were still good. But that disgusting great-aunt actually impersonated Grandma. Why would she impersonate Grandma?

Grandma’s whereabouts were unknown. What should they do now? How should they act? Should they really escape this village? And why were all the victims during this period guests here? Was it really related to this inn?

Luo Xiaofeng became increasingly suspicious of this inn. She remembered that on the day Xia Yimin had his accident, she seemed to have seen a black shadow dart out of the window. At the time, she thought it was just the shadow of a plastic bag blown by the wind, or that she had simply imagined it. Now, thinking back, it was truly strange. Could there really be a terrifying secret in this inn? She had been here for so many years; why was something like this only happening now? She thoroughly checked all the rooms inside and outside the inn, including the living room and the woodshed, but found nothing unusual.

At this moment, she suddenly remembered the inn’s basement. It was a secret room, where, in earlier years, some aged liquor and wine were supposedly stored. She had once seen her uncle carrying a few bottles of wine out of it. She didn’t have the key to the secret room, so only her uncle should have it. This was the only room she hadn’t seen.

She vaguely felt that there might be some secret inside, and without unraveling the inn’s secret, she truly couldn’t find peace. And the next target was Chi Ziming. She truly didn’t want anything to happen to Chi Ziming. She had developed a feeling similar to love for Chi Ziming, but she intended to relegate it to the realm of friendship.

At this moment, her determination grew stronger: I must uncover this secret.