Zane Zhuang did not sleep a wink all night. By dawn, the baby girl’s body was still burning with fever, and her breathing grew weaker and weaker. Facing this situation, Zane felt helpless. He took out a small sealed earthen jar, about the size of his palm, containing his mother’s spirit.
Victor Wu had already dealt with it; his mother’s yin energy would no longer harm Zane. Though he was already in his twenties and no longer feared ghosts, and had learned some protective techniques from Victor Wu, he was now out of options. All he could do was seek help from his mother.
Early in the morning, before sunrise, Zane sealed the room tightly. He opened the jar, and a wisp of green smoke drifted out.
“Zane, why haven’t you spoken to your mother in so long? What’s wrong? Don’t you want to talk to me?”
Facing his mother, now a ghost, Zane bowed deeply, knelt on the ground, and touched his head to the floor.
“No, Mother. These last few days I’ve been traveling constantly, and I have to fulfill the tasks Master Victor Fan entrusted to me, so…”
“This baby girl will not live much longer.”
In an instant, Zane stared at his mother in shock, then looked at the baby wrapped in fur. His heart raced with anxiety as he turned back to his mother.
“You may not see it clearly, but those close to death have a black cloud above their heads. This child already has a black cloud overhead; within three days, she will die.”
“Mother, what do we do? Is there any way to save her?”
Zane panicked, looking at his mother with hope. Mrs. Zhuang drifted silently to the baby girl, reaching out her hand. She knew the situation with this child well. After pondering for a moment, she looked at Zane and spoke.
“Zane, there is only one way to save this child. Tonight at midnight, go to Grimhill Cemetery. Lately, the cold has claimed many lives, and if you find a suitable corpse, it may be possible to save her. This is your only hope.”
Zane looked at his mother in astonishment.
“What exactly do I need to do? Please tell me, Mother.”
“You must find someone who has just died. In the mouths of the dead, there is a breath called ‘Yang’—it’s the last living energy trapped in the heart, the essence of a soul. If this breath escapes the corpse, it turns into a cold wind, a wandering spirit. Usually, on the seventh day after death, this breath leaves the body. If you can use your mouth to draw out this breath and put it in this jar, then feed it to the baby girl, she may survive.”
“I understand, Mother. I’ll go ask around and find out where the most people are buried. I’ll go and keep watch right away.”
With a sudden rush, Mrs. Zhuang stopped Zane.
“Aren’t you afraid?”
Zane looked at his mother blankly and shook his head.
“You could live freely now—what’s so bad about that? Take me with you. In this world, I’ll help you beg for food; it’s not hard at all. Instead, you insist on becoming a servant for the Henderson Family. Zane, what are you really thinking?”
Zane bowed, lowered his head, and then looked up at his mother.
“Mother, long ago, we never had a good day in the Johnson Family. It wasn’t until we went to Master Victor Fan’s place that I met Youchen, and the master treated me well. These years, the time I spent with Youchen was the happiest. Now, Youchen is dead. Before he left, he asked me—if anything happened to him, he hoped I could protect the Henderson Family in his place.”
Mrs. Zhuang sighed.
“Go on, Zane. You were born with a strong fate; ordinary ghosts can’t possess you. Still, you must be careful. Before you collect the Yang breath, go to crowded places and soak up some yang energy. That way, you’ll be safer when you visit the cemetery at night. Go, Zane. I’ll watch over the baby girl.”
Zane nodded. Just then, someone passed by outside the door. In a flash, Mrs. Zhuang drifted out and possessed that person.
“Mother, I’m going now.”
The weather was good today—no snow or wind, and the sun was bright. Zane wandered through the marketplace and other crowded places all day, always seeking out the busiest spots.
At night, the temperature dropped, and Zane found out where the most recent burials had taken place.
In the north part of the city, there was a Grimhill Cemetery where the recently dead, too poor to afford proper burial, were laid to rest. Zane used to fear ghosts, but after learning things from Victor Wu, he was no longer afraid.
Midnight was approaching. The air was cold and damp; outside the city, the roads were deserted. Not even the sound of insects or birds could be heard—it was utterly silent.
Zane walked along the moonlit path, his breath steaming in the cold. At last, he reached the outskirts of Grimhill Cemetery. As soon as he arrived, he saw several wandering spirits drifting about, their expressions blank and lifeless.
It was winter, so the cemetery’s air wasn’t too heavy, just a faint odor lingered. Zane hurried through the graves and finally found a corpse, covered with a few branches. It looked freshly dead, frozen stiff by the cold.
After removing the branches, Zane bent down and tried to pry open the corpse’s mouth, but it was frozen shut. He had to use a stick to force it open.
Finally, as soon as he managed to open it a little, Zane pressed his mouth to the corpse’s lips. A stream of ghostly blue vapor flowed out, and he quickly inhaled it, then opened the jar and exhaled the vapor into it.
During the day, Zane had asked around to find where the most people were buried. He found several more corpses and managed to collect more Yang breath. Seeing that it wasn’t too late, Zane decided to keep searching the cemetery—more was better, and he was deeply worried about the baby girl.
“Hey, kid, what are you doing here so late at night?”
Suddenly, a harsh male voice rang out. Zane shivered and turned to look—a pale-faced ghost, not particularly fearsome. Zane had heard Victor Wu say that if you see a ghost, it’s best to ignore it; if the ghost knows you can see it, some malicious spirits will try to torment you.
Because people have three flames on their shoulders, it’s not easy for ghosts to get close. This ghost kept three or four meters away, staring at Zane with a puzzled look.
Zane kept searching for corpses, ignoring the ghost.
“You brat, what are you doing with all that Yang breath? I want to see for myself.”
The pale-faced ghost suddenly drifted right up to Zane, then, with a swift motion, tore off his entire face. A bloody, raw visage appeared before Zane.
Zane remained unfazed and kept searching, continuing to collect Yang breath. The pale-faced ghost returned to normal, looking puzzled.
“Did I get it wrong? That kid’s reaction just now—he can definitely see me.”
Still not giving up, the pale-faced ghost circled in front of Zane and stuck out his foot, trying to trip him. Zane easily stepped over it.
“Hey, you can see me, can’t you?”
Suddenly, the ghost placed a hand on Zane’s shoulder. This time, Zane was startled.
“I’ll tear you to pieces.”
Without thinking, Zane punched the ghost hard in the face. Instantly, the ghost’s face caved in.
“That hurts! Ha, interesting.”
Zane started running through the cemetery. He immediately realized this ghost was not ordinary—he could touch Zane’s shoulder directly. A chill ran through Zane; the flames on his shoulder must have gone out. Now, swarms of wandering ghosts began closing in.
Zane ran in the opposite direction of the moon. Victor Wu had once told him: people walk east, ghosts walk west. No matter what happens, even if you’re lost or confused by ghosts, the simplest way is to look for the moon overhead.
As long as you run away from where the moon is setting, you’ll always find your way out.
But no matter how far Zane ran, he was always surrounded by the cemetery. Behind him, swarms of ghosts wailed and followed, while the pale-faced ghost laughed gleefully, staying right on Zane’s heels, occasionally scratching his back with long fingernails.
Then Zane tripped and fell to the ground. Suddenly, his hands were pinned down, and he was lifted off the ground, floating. He screamed, immediately recalling a spell Victor Wu had taught him. He recited the incantation, but it didn’t work.
“Didn’t expect you to know a spell, huh? Well, I’ll tear you apart right now.”
“Wait!”
Suddenly, Zane shouted, and the pale-faced ghost stopped.
“I need to save someone. After I do, you can eat me if you want. I’ll come back, and you can do whatever you want then.”
The ghost didn’t believe a word Zane said. He laughed wildly, pulling at Zane’s hands with all his strength. Zane screamed.
“What’s all the noise?”
At that moment, a commanding voice rang out, and all the wandering ghosts scattered instantly.
A streak of green light swept over, and the ghost grabbing Zane immediately let go, then knelt on the ground.
“Grandpa Three-Eyes, it was this kid causing trouble in our place, so I caught him.”
The figure before him was massive, with three eyes and dressed in a sleeveless rough linen shirt, his whole body radiating a green glow.
“What’s your name?”
The three-eyed, green-glowing ghost called out. Zane wasn’t afraid and got up from the ground.
“My name is Zane Zhuang.”
“Heh, in the ghost realm, everyone calls me Three-Eyes. I feel like we’ve met somewhere before.”