Wu Xin: The Monster Killer

Chapter 84 White Glaze

Ma Yinghao covered his mouth and nose with a handkerchief, and extended his cane through the iron bars of the drafty doorway with the other. He brushed the disheveled hair from his face with one end of the cane and asked in a muffled voice, "Any results?"

In the confined space, there seemed to be the faint hissing of a venomous snake, a faint, almost imperceptible sound that didn't reach the ears but instead burrowed into the pores of the skin, stimulating the nerves. The azure eyes disappeared into the darkness, while the other eye shone in the dim light—it should have been azure too, but a hazy white film had formed in the pupil. As for whether it was blind or not, Ma Yinghao didn't know.

Ma Yinghao didn't know, and neither did anyone else. It was brought back from Xikang by Ma Yinghao's Japanese friend.

Ma Yinghao has many Japanese friends, including an officer named Koyanagi Osamu, who is only in his thirties and with whom he has been friends for over ten years. A few years ago, Koyanagi Osamu secretly infiltrated Xikang. In Xikang, he rescued a strange man on the verge of death from a flock of vultures.

The strange man still appeared to be a young man, with a sickly pallor and filth. Wrapped in layers of animal fur and curled up in an open space, he looked like a bloated pile of corpses. A vulture, sensing the scent of death, spread its wings and circled overhead, while he lowered his head slightly, revealing a delicate, pointed chin and thin lips through his tangled long hair.

His bizarre appearance was not enough to prompt Koyanagi Osamu, who was burdened with a heavy responsibility, to come to his rescue; the reason Koyanagi Osamu stopped beside him was because he heard him muttering to himself in Japanese, about how he was one year old, how he was two years old, as if he were recounting someone's life story.

Xiao Liuzhi thought he had met a fellow countryman in distress, so he decided to save his life and take him away from Xikang. However, he regretted it very much when they were only halfway back.

The strange man rarely spoke and was always wrapped in his animal hide. The edges of the hide still bore the dry, sticky, purplish-black flesh, indicating that it had not been tanned at all; it seemed to have been skinned alive from a wild animal and then draped directly over his body. Occasionally, his clothes could be seen beneath the hide—a Tibetan robe whose true nature was indiscernible. The reason it was indiscernible was not because of any unusual material, but because it was filthy.

No one could control him; he hid all the food he obtained under his animal skin, so no one ever saw him eat or drink. Koyanagi gradually discovered that he could speak several languages, including Chinese, and was likely just a bastard, unrelated to his homeland. Koyanagi wanted to abandon him, and on the night before he was to do so, he, as usual, suppressed his disgust and struck up a conversation with the strange man. The strange man, huddled in his long hair and fur, unexpectedly uttered a sentence in Chinese.

He said, "I am Bai Liuli."

Xiao Liuzhi was immediately horrified—Bai Liuli was the most notorious sorcerer in the Xikang region in the past five years. He seemed to have appeared out of nowhere, committed countless evils, and then vanished without a trace. According to legend, he was already dead.

Xiaoliuzhi didn't know how to deal with a living devil, so Bai Liuli was thrown into the most secluded prison shortly after arriving in Tianjin.

No one wanted to take him in, and he became an abandoned monster until Ma Yinghao heard about his existence. Using a little trick, Ma Yinghao managed to bring him to his home.

Ma Yinghao was interested in all things unusual; moreover, Bai Liuli was not just a simple oddball. And Bai Liuli was quite reasonable; he ate and drank his food, and therefore genuinely listened to him. Ma Yinghao had been secretly raising him for a year, but he only became certain a month ago that he wouldn't harm him.

Bending down to unlock the door, Ma Yinghao lifted the iron gate, revealing several iron steps below. He cautiously descended, enduring the increasingly pungent stench, and said, "I don't want to wait any longer. Also, your iron needle is missing."

A dark shadow lurked in the corner, faintly emitting a bell-like sound. Ma Yinghao had personally tied the bell around Bai Liuli's neck; because the basement was dimly lit, he often couldn't see the other person's location, and the sound helped him locate him. There was no reason to dig another basement within the basement, but Bai Liuli needed it. Bai Liuli's eyes, both cloudy and clear, could no longer withstand the light. The backlash of the witchcraft had almost completely destroyed him; he had sacrificed his son's life to prolong his own existence until he was rescued.

He loved his son dearly; his son was always held close to his heart. Curled up in a damp corner of the basement, he closed his eyes, lowered his head, and stammered, "Yes, lost. I know."

Ma Yinghao had gradually gotten used to the air here, so he put down the handkerchief in his hand: "Everything went according to plan, but strangely, I couldn't find the iron needle afterwards. I calculated the time very accurately, there was absolutely no mistake."

Bai Liuli's right arm hung limply at her side as she bowed her head and replied, "Someone removed the needles beforehand, causing one of her souls and spirits to dissipate."

Ma Yinghao frowned: "The soul is incomplete, what should we do?"

Bai Liuli raised her left hand and reached into her bosom: "Let me try."

Then he took out a small drum made of human skin and placed it on the ground. He gently tapped the drumhead with his left fingertip, producing a "thump" sound that was surprisingly similar to a heartbeat. As the drumbeat rang out, his right arm trembled violently, as if there were no bones in his flesh, but rather a living creature hidden within.

Ma Yinghao was not afraid. He covered his mouth and nose again with a snow-white handkerchief and calmly watched Bai Liuli's actions.

The white leather was the dirtiest and most filthy pile in the corner. Only the fingers constantly jumping on the drumhead indicated that there was a living person inside the pile of leather. The drumbeats were sometimes fast and sometimes slow, and his right arm convulsed violently in response. Suddenly, with a pained expression, he threw his head back and raised his right arm, slamming it hard against the wall. The animal skin covering his chest came loose, and something rolled out a long way. Ma Yinghao glanced down without showing any emotion, then immediately pretended not to see it.

The object was over a foot long; it was a stillborn infant. The corpse had undergone special processing, showing neither decay nor dehydration. In the electric light shining down from above, a crimson mist emanated from its body. On its small face, a pair of eyes bulged and were tightly closed, while its mouth and nose were damaged, sewn together into a twisted mess with black thread, resembling a crudely made doll.

Just then, Bai Liuli stopped moving. She pinched her right middle finger with her left hand, and an iron needle slowly emerged from under her fingernail. Along with the needle, drops of black blood dripped out.

"I saw..." he said hoarsely, trying his best to force out the iron needle: "I saw flowers, trees, mountains, and rivers."

Ma Yinghao's eyes widened: "Flowering Trees and Mountains? What kind of place is that?"

The iron needle was completely removed from Bai Liuli's fingertip, the tip still covered with wisps of flesh and blood. Bai Liuli replied, "I don't know."

Ma Yinghao sighed impatiently, "You said you could read souls!"

Bai Liuli brought the iron needle to her lips and licked it from head to toe: "Her soul is incomplete; she's missing a part of her soul and spirit. There's nothing I can do about it."

Ma Yinghao waved his cane: "Useless! You said you could capture her soul, and what happened? She was scared to death by you, and I had to collect her body! You also said you could lure her soul here, but damn it, she lost a soul and a spirit halfway there! Flowers, trees, mountains, and rivers—the world is vast, and there are flowers, trees, mountains, and rivers everywhere. What's the point of your answer?"

Bai Liuli crawled on the ground, moving towards Ma Yinghao to the soft tinkling of bells. He reached out and picked up the infant corpse from the ground, then slowly backed away, tucking the corpse back into his arms.

Ma Yinghao, with one hand on his hip and rolling his eyes, thought to himself, "Flowers, trees, mountains, and rivers? Second Madam never leaves the house, how could she see flowers, trees, mountains, and rivers? Does she have flowers, trees, mountains, and rivers in her house? There really is, in the back garden, there are flowers, trees, mountains, and rivers."

He turned his gaze back to Bai Liuli, abruptly changing the subject: "What do you need?"

Bai Liuli crossed her arms over her chest, cradling the infant corpse beneath the animal hide: "I need salt. And go find my needle."

Ma Yinghao nodded thoughtfully, then suddenly smiled at him: "Thank you for your hard work."

A bell rang in the darkness, signaling Bai Liuli to retreat into a corner.

Ma Yinghao returned to the human world and spent two hours bathing and changing. He walked thoughtfully to the telephone, placed one hand on the receiver, and after thinking for a while, picked it up to make a long-distance call.

The call connected to the Ma residence in Beijing, and a sweet, delicate female voice came through the receiver. Ma Yinghao cleared his throat and called out, "Eighth Aunt, this is Yinghao."

Aunt Ba immediately smiled, her tone extremely gentle. Ma Yinghao continued, "Is Junjie here? He asked me to buy him some picture books; I need to ask him what kind he's asking for."

A moment later, the voice on the other end of the line changed, and Ma Junjie clearly said, "Big Brother."

Ma Yinghao laughed and said, "Junjie, how about we go to Tianjin for a couple of days? Your big brother will treat you."

Ma Junjie's voice was slightly lower, but still clear: "Don't come to me with your adult matters. I've said everything I needed to say. Don't ask again, and I don't want to bring it up again!"

Ma Yinghao asked, "Junjie, do you think Second Aunt's death has anything to do with me?"

Ma Junjie emphasized, "I don't know anything!"

Then, with a "click," the call was disconnected.

(End of this chapter)