Chapter 5: The Old Fire Pit
“Was the voice in my dream real? Or did I have such a bizarre dream because I longed for the world before?”
Hu Ma silently thought about the strange temple in his dream and the voice he heard just before waking up, feeling a sense of oppression in his heart.
He silently lifted the blanket and got out of bed.
In this eerie environment, he dared not take off his clothes and shoes, making it easier to get up.
However…
…It seemed that he hadn’t laid down at all last night, so who covered him with the blanket?
Outside, the old lady was already waiting with a cane and a bag on her back.
Seeing Hu Ma come out, she said coldly, “Let’s go.”
Hu Ma, both afraid of her and subconsciously wanting to please her, took two steps forward and offered, “Shall I carry the bag?”
The old lady seemed surprised and gave Hu Ma a deep look.
Perhaps because he hadn’t slept well last night, Hu Ma had severe dark circles and a pale complexion without a hint of blood, making him look somewhat listless.
The old lady’s expression seemed a bit heavy as she shook her head and said, “You have wounds on your shoulders; you can’t lift heavy items.”
“Let’s go to the old fire pit first, and pay respects to our ancestors.”
“…”
Hu Ma didn’t know what the connection between the old fire pit and their ancestors was, but feeling weary, he couldn’t bother to ask.
The path was made of pebbles, with some places still having puddles left from a recent rain, making it muddy and damp.
The morning fog enveloped the village, casting a mystical aura over everything near and far.
This world was completely different from the one in Hu Ma’s memory; ancient and remote, it also carried an indescribable feeling of alienation and decay.
Facing this world, Hu Ma somehow felt a vague sense of trepidation.
Just then, he suddenly felt a chill on his left hand. Looking down, he saw Little Red Thorn, a young girl, had approached and took his hand.
“Let’s go, Brother Hu Ma…”
She looked up at him with a bright smile, seeming just like a little girl who was scared to go out and always liked to hold an adult’s hand.
“But she’s a little monster…”
Inwardly, he was reluctant to hold the hand of this young girl, but he didn’t dare to pull away, so he could only forcibly endure it.
Holding her hand, he followed the old lady’s stooped figure, moving forward.
…
This was Hu Ma’s second time stepping out, and unlike the chaos and dizziness of yesterday, this time, he clearly saw the world around him. It seemed to be in a mountainous area; wherever he looked, he could see towering peaks and lush green forests.
The surrounding was full of wooden buildings, stacked layer upon layer, with broken stone paths irregularly dividing them, sketching out the shape of the village.
This time, he looked more carefully but still couldn’t find any modern amenities he was familiar with.
Whether it was the villagers’ clothing or the farming tools, the clumsy stone mills and the damp wells all exuded an ancient air.
“Whoosh…”
As they walked, a household pushed open their door.
But as soon as they saw Hu Ma and his companions, they quickly retreated and quietly closed the door.
The village woke early, and they occasionally encountered groups of people on the road, but as soon as they saw the old lady, they quietly avoided her.
Those who couldn’t dodge in time only awkwardly stood there, smiling nervously at the old lady.
Hu Ma vaguely heard someone whispering in one of the houses, “Old Lady Hu really has great abilities…”
“That Hu boy had such a severe haunting, yet she managed to save him…”
“…”
“Hey, are they heading towards the old fire pit?”
“Will the ancestors recognize little Hu Ma?”
“Shush…”
“…”
“Red Thorn doesn’t like the villagers…”
As they walked, the young girl suddenly looked up at Hu Ma and said, “Grandma always helps them with their illnesses, and when their families are too poor, she doesn’t take money and even provides herbs. But now they all avoid her, scared that grandma will take their lives to give to Brother Hu Ma…”
“Borrow lives?”
Hu Ma looked at the girl’s face, somewhat at a loss for words.
The villagers were afraid of the grandma, and he was too…
But was this grandma some sort of village physician or shaman?
In his previous life, in some remote and ancient villages, the responsibility for healing and exorcising was often taken on by one person.
Amidst respectful and fearful gazes, the elderly, the young, and the boy traversed the village, reaching a hillside to the north.
At the base of the hill, a few people were already waiting.
The leading one, wearing a sheepskin jacket and with a long iron pipe at his waist, had an elderly face covered in wrinkles.
“Old Lady Hu…”
Seeing Hu Ma and the old lady coming, he hurriedly greeted them, first glancing at Hu Ma before hesitantly saying to the old lady, “It seems little Hu Ma’s health has greatly improved, but… are you really planning to take him into the old fire pit?”
The old lady slowly raised her head to look at him, then glanced at the few middle-aged men who were huddling behind him, appearing nervous.
“Is there a problem?”
“…”
“No, no…”
The old man hastily shook his head, whispering, “Isn’t Hu Ma just recently recovered? Perhaps… you could let him rest a bit more?”
“It’s precisely because he has just recovered that we need to go to the old fire pit.”
The old lady’s stance seemed very firm, “If our ancestors don’t protect him, who will?”
The elderly man’s face turned incredibly awkward.
But the old lady didn’t say much more and took the lead, walking ahead with Little Red Thorn excitedly tugging Hu Ma’s hand to follow.
The elderly man at this point could not say much else, and those behind him also smiled and nodded to the old lady.
But as soon as she passed, they gathered around the man in the sheepskin jacket, looking troubled as they said:
“Chief, what do you think about the old lady doing this?”
“There’s no choice!”
The old chief said, “In this village, who dares to stop the old lady?”
“Are we forgetting our conscience?”
“Let’s see what the ancestors decide…”
“…”
Once they climbed the hill, Hu Ma saw a twenty-square-meter pit on the flat ground.
Surrounded by mud bricks in a long shape, the pit was filled with ashes.
He could vaguely see the dim red charcoal hidden beneath the surface layer of ash, emitting smoke as if the fire had never been extinguished.
But what caught his attention most was a partially burnt skull in the pit.
Only half was left, lying on top of the ash, empty eye sockets staring directly at him.
Hu Ma’s heart skipped a beat: “Is this old fire pit used for burning people?”
“Kneel.”
The old lady had by then reached the front of the fire pit, unwrapped her bundle, and quietly instructed Hu Ma.
Hu Ma obediently kneeled.
Little Red Thorn, on the other hand, didn’t kneel. She sat to the side with a grin, propping her chin with her hands, watching him.
“Kneel a bit closer so the ancestors can get a good look at you.”
Seeing Hu Ma kneeling about seven to eight meters away, the old lady frowned and beckoned him closer.
Reluctantly, Hu Ma moved closer until he was less than a meter away from the old fire pit. He could feel the oppressive, humid heat radiating from it, causing him to sweat all over and making it difficult to breathe.
From her bundle, the old lady took out incense, a bowl, meat, and talismans.
One by one, she lit incense, offered meat, burned talismans, and respectfully completed the ritual, then lowered her head in prayer:
“For twenty years, the Hu family has entered the village, helping neighbors and diligently farming the land.”
“Now, the Hu family has encountered trouble, enemies pressuring and demons entangling.”
“We seek protection from our ancestors for my grandson, promising to repay more incense money…”
“…”
She closed her eyes, mumbling repeatedly, her expression solemn and sincere, touching Hu Ma’s heart.
This grandmother really cared about her grandson…
Unfortunately…
Before he could finish his thought, a chilly wind suddenly swept over the old fire pit.
Hu Ma’s vision blurred for a moment, then he felt the warming air from the pit turn icy cold, as if it could freeze him solid.
This coldness seemed to seep into his bones, locking up his entire body.
At that moment, his ears were filled with whispers from nowhere.
It was as if a hundred people were murmuring secrets, their voices densely packed and pouring into his ears.
Not only that, but his eyes also ached terribly. When he instinctively rubbed them and looked again, he was shocked.
In the old fire pit, the partially burnt skull had somehow developed an eye, coldly and indifferently staring at him.
Immediately after, a hand stretched out from the ashes.
Then a second hand appeared, followed by a face, then another, and yet another.
One by one, ghostly arms and indifferent, translucent faces emerged from the ash.
Were there dozens, hundreds, or thousands of them?
They were densely packed, intertwined, like a centipede with thousands of arms reassembled.
The countless figures, crammed into the small twenty-square-meter fire pit.
Their bodies overlapped, like a crowd crushed together.
Countless faces squeezed together, countless eyes up and down, all focused on Hu Ma, blinking unceasingly.
Some were cold and indifferent, some were confused and foolish, some were curious yet fearful.
“Buzz!”
Hu Ma was overwhelmed by the sight, terror flooding his chest, nearly stopping his heart.
He just stared as endless ghostly figures emerged from the fire pit.
The surrounding chilly wind howled around the fire pit, the old lady’s chanting became more urgent, and Little Red Thorn hid in the distance.
As if in a bizarre human tree, more and more ghostly figures climbed out of the fire pit.
They were just an arm’s length away, looking down on Hu Ma indifferently.
Not one reached out to him.
…
…
The old lady continued to chant, her head bowed, her voice becoming faster and faster until the three sticks of incense she had lit burned down unusually quickly, and she finally stopped.
Her messy hair covered her face, hiding her expression, but a sigh of disappointment was heard.
