Chapter 108

It is said that this evil ghost bride has been sealed under their village for more than 100 years. She died unmarried and has become a red evil spirit. She has a blood feud with their village. When she was doing evil in the village, it was subdued by an unfathomable Taoist priest. However, the Taoist priest's magic power is limited. In the end, he could only think of a compromise and seal the ghost bride underground.

Every 10 to 20 years, when the seal loosens, a sacrifice is needed to complete a ghost marriage with her to appease her resentment, strengthen the seal, and ensure the future peace of the village.

【???】

[What kind of bullshit idea is this bullshit Taoist priest? ]

[Are you crazy? To keep the village peaceful, you have to sacrifice a living person to the ghost bride. Then the life of the groom promised to the ghost bride is no longer a life?]

On the other side, Shen Haoran was also forced by the villagers to change into wedding clothes, and was pushed into the hall full of red silk without any refusal.

Inside the house, in the main hall, red candles were shining brightly, but there was no trace of festive noise. Instead, there was an indescribable solemnity and sadness.

Except for a few important people in the village, including the village chief, the rest of the guests were paper dolls. Because they did not have eyes to communicate with yin and yang, the whole scene looked even more eerie.

The "bride" was wearing a wedding dress embroidered with intricate patterns. The red dress was as red as fire, but it looked particularly desolate on such a night. She was not a human being, and the bride, who was also a paper doll, of course had no popularity.

【Fortunately, it’s a paper figure.】

[Nah, even though the situation is already weird enough, thankfully the one in the coffin wasn't scheduled to come to the ceremony, otherwise I really wouldn't have been able to hold on. The moment I looked into the bare eyes of the paper bride, cold sweat broke out on my back.]

At this time, the hall had already been decorated with joy, red candles were shining brightly, and the word "happiness" was posted everywhere. There was a strong festive atmosphere everywhere. In the center of the main hall, there was an eight-immortal table, on which were enshrined tablets of heaven, earth, the emperor, parents, and teachers, as well as fruits and flowers that symbolized good luck.

Shen Haoran looked up, past the eight-immortals table, and on the wall facing him was a vermilion picture of a double happiness, so red that it seemed as if blood was about to drip out.

Director Huan also used a blurred shooting technique here, with a slightly hazy mist covering the scene and warm red light shining on the paper man's face, creating a vague, lingering, and unreal horror atmosphere.

With his mouth blocked, Shen Haoran could only raise his head to express his anger.

Come and kill him if you have the guts. If ghosts really exist in the world, he will definitely turn into a fierce ghost and come back to seek revenge after he dies.

However, the next moment, his head was forcefully pressed down, and he and the paper bride beside him bowed to their parents.

A chilling wind blew up again, making the red silk in the wedding hall flutter. A large flower was pinned in the hair. The emcee, who was heavily made up and had been hired by the village chief, smiled and said, "It seems the bride is very pleased with our son-in-law. She can't wait to tie the knot with him."

"Get on the bridal sedan~"

It was clearly the groom who was supposed to be married, but he was stuffed into a big red sedan chair by the villagers. The sedan bearers, who were also wearing red clothes and had been waiting for a long time, worked together to lift the sedan chair and the groom who was tied up inside it.

The joyful music sounded again.

The villagers of Wujia Village followed the sedan chair bearers and headed towards the cemetery on the back mountain in a mighty procession.

[Wait, where are we going, a cemetery?]

[Oh my god, I suddenly had an idea. Is ghost marriage not possible for living people?]

[Then he must die before he can serve Xiao Cui...]

Although it was a red wedding procession, the villagers following behind were raising their hands and scattering white coins.

Finally arrived at the cemetery on the back mountain.

Although it is called a cemetery, there is only a lonely grave and several lonely mounds surrounding it. There are not even names on the mounds, only the year and month recorded, x year x month x day. The groom looks more like a sacrifice.

Next to the latest dug pit, there is a coffin placed there.

As the interstellar audience gasped, the villagers with exaggerated smiles on their faces pushed the groom into the coffin in a lively manner.

The last thing Shen Haoran heard was the MC's drawn-out falsetto: "Enter the bridal chamber."

Then, one after another, there was the sound of iron nails driving into wood and the sound of earth filling.

Qin Dongxiao, who played the groom, also showed his amazing acting skills in this process.

After everyone left, Shen Haoran raised his hand, bit the hemp rope in his hand with his teeth, and kicked the coffin board on it frantically. However, it was not only the weight of the board, but also the nails and the thick earth.

Everything Shen Haoran did was destined to be in vain.

[Oh my god, was he really buried alive? ]

[Oh my god, Haoran is going to be alright, right? Can anyone come and save him? ]

Because of the violent struggle, the already limited oxygen in the small space became less and less. Shen Haoran's vital signs became weaker and weaker, and his consciousness gradually became blurred.

He was dreaming again.

In his dream, he seemed to be possessed by a girl named Xiao Cui.

Xiao Cui is virtuous and capable. She lives with her only relative, her grandmother, and is also very beautiful.

The season for picking wild vegetables has arrived. Xiao Cui carries a basket and goes up the mountain with the villagers. The group becomes more and more scattered, and the weather in the mountains changes suddenly. Suddenly it starts to rain heavily. While hiding from the rain, she accidentally slips and falls into the valley.

Fortunately, she was rescued by a young hunter.

After returning to the village, Xiao Cui often smiled foolishly, obviously falling in love with her savior at first sight.

As luck would have it, the next time she was picking wild vegetables, she met him again, and he blushed and gave her a freshly hunted rabbit.

In the end, the man fell in love with Xiao Cui and the woman was willing to marry him, and they secretly decided to spend their lives together. The hunter was the only one left in his house, but the hunter was also very capable. He and Xiao Cui agreed that after he hunted more game in the mountains, he would propose to Xiao Cui's family in two years. Xiao Cui also agreed with the hunter that she would wait for him to come to the village.

Unexpectedly, before the hunter came to propose marriage, a rich man who had left the village was returning to worship his ancestors. He saw Xiao Cui in the crowd and wanted to marry her as his concubine.

He didn't marry her legally, but only gave her the status of a concubine. The rich businessman himself was nearly 50 years old, and was more than old enough to be Xiao Cui's father.

Not to mention that Xiao Cui already has a lover and is waiting for him to marry her.

Grandma didn't ask Xiao Cui to be rich and powerful, she just hoped that she would live a peaceful and happy life. She was very pleased that her granddaughter and the capable hunter were in love with each other. When the rich businessman's lobbyist came to propose marriage, she simply stopped him at the door.

But that's not the end of the story.

Xiao Cui and the hunter were also afraid that the rich businessman would become desperate and do something despicable, so they agreed that the hunter would come to the house as soon as possible to finalize the marriage and put a stop to the rich businessman's idea.

On the day when the hunter was supposed to come, there was no sign of him from morning to night.

There were rumors in the village that the hunter was afraid of the rich businessman and ran away, and the villagers also advised Xiao Cui to marry the rich businessman directly.

Xiao Cui didn't believe that the hunter would abandon her, so she wanted to leave the village to look for the hunter. She was worried that he had an accident. Then she realized that all the roads in and out of the village were blocked. It was not that the hunter didn't come, but he probably couldn't get in.

It turned out that the village chief was also bribed by the rich businessman, and the village chief was actually arranging a wedding. Xiao Cui had a premonition that something was wrong, but it was too late. Someone broke into the house and controlled her.

Late at night, when everyone was asleep, a hunter, with wounds on her face and a bruised face, sneaked into the village and entered the woodshed where Xiao Cui was imprisoned.

It turned out that the hunter had been hiding nearby, just to enter the village and take Xiao Cui away.

"I'll take you away. Let's leave here, leave Wujia Village, and fly away, far away from these demons."

Xiao Cui also wanted to leave, but she still shook her head: "I can't leave grandma behind."

Grandma hugged Xiao Cui and said, "Silly child, go away. The farther the better. If you leave, they won't have what they want, and naturally they won't bother an old woman like me. Wait a few years, when this matter is over, and then you can come back and take me out to enjoy a good life."

Finally, under the protection of her grandmother, Xiao Cui and the hunter escaped from the village under the cover of night.

But not long after, the sound of gongs was heard in the village, and they discovered that Xiao Cui had escaped!

After chasing for most of the night, the hunter and Xiao Cui were finally surrounded by the villagers in large numbers on a cliff, with a surging river below.

Surrounded by the crowd, the village chief stood up and sneered, "Run! See where you two wild couples can go. If this gets out, it will bring shame to our village!"

"Catch them all and tie them up."

The hunter wanted to protect Xiao Cui behind him, but Xiao Cui shook off the hunter's hand. She knew that they could not escape. In this case, at least she could not let the hunter be implicated by her.

"Village Chief, I will go back with you. I begged Zhao Wu to take me with me. I followed your advice and married a wealthy businessman. Please let Zhao Wu go."

Xiao Cui was tied up with hemp ropes, but she didn't know that in order to completely cut off Xiao Cui's thoughts and let her stay with the rich businessman peacefully, and they could also get the due compensation from the rich businessman, the village chief and the villagers had become very cruel.

The hunter, who was originally pinned down by other villagers, was still struggling. Suddenly, the villagers let go and someone's foot stretched out, causing the hunter to trip and fall towards the back of the cliff.

With a splash, the hunter's figure was instantly submerged and disappeared by the surging and rolling river that looked like a huge mouth.

The rain that had been brewing overhead for a long time finally fell in torrents. Xiao Cui, who was lying on the shore watching but could not see the hunter, cried heartbreakingly.

With red eyes, he looked at the village chief and cried out in tears, "You promised me, why? Why?"

"I didn't say anything just now, and what does this have to do with us? It was clearly the hunter who slipped and fell, so it's no one else's fault."

This is not the most desperate thing.

When Xiao Cui returned to the village, she found her grandmother, who loved her the most and depended on her for everything, lying coldly in the rain at the entrance of the village. There was a big hole on her head, and her body was covered with footprints of countless people.

My grandmother tried to stop these evil people, but they beat her to death and trampled over her without any conscience.

The long night of despair has not yet ended.

To prevent her from doing anything else.

The village chief and the villagers discussed and decided to put a wedding dress on her tonight. At dawn, they sent someone to invite the rich businessman, and they went straight into the bridal chamber in the old house that the rich businessman had renovated in the village, making the marriage a fait accompli.

The tied Xiao Cui was manipulated like a puppet by the villagers with yin-yang ghost masks painted on their faces. She changed into a bright red wedding dress, painted her eyebrows and lips, and wore a phoenix hairpin with three gold and silver ribbons on her head for marriage.

"You are so lucky. These are all gifts from wealthy businessmen."

"Look at all this gold, jade, and pearls. You can tell that your great grandfather loves you very much."

"A pretty face can seduce people. If I were you, I would have married off in style long ago."

Amidst the traditional wedding celebrations in Daxia, a familiar yet unfamiliar classic piece of music from Hongshier was played, along with the high-pitched sound of the folk instrument suona.

"Get on the bridal sedan!"

…

When the drunken rich businessman stepped into the bridal chamber, he saw Xiao Cui, who had hanged herself in a red wedding dress, refusing to yield and having no attachment to the world. She was even full of resentment.

On the dressing mirror, Xiao Cui wrote in blood, each word tearful and tearful: "The evil spirit is taking my life!!!"

She couldn't get rid of these evil people when she was a human, so if she became a ghost, would it scare these evil people?

…

Shen Haoran finally struggled to wake up from his suffocating, dark nightmare that seemed like he could never escape.

I opened my mouth and gasped for breath. This almost real dream was even more terrifying than the ghostly dreams I had had in the past, and there was no escape.

When ghosts hurt people, at least they have to follow the basic laws, not touch their taboos, and not do anything wrong. Then you don't have to be afraid that they will hurt you. But the evil of human beings comes without reason. For some benefits, they can even disregard the law and kill people for money.

[Indeed, I just followed the male protagonist and entered the perspective of that poor Xiao Cui. It was too dark and too depressing.]

"So Xiao Cui is the victim! How can there be such a village? There's no law."

We have to acknowledge that, in addition to the brilliant and glorious civilization inherited from our home planet, there are also some flaws and bad habits in certain corners. Therefore, we must view this from a dialectical perspective. We need to inherit the excellent things of our ancestors, but we must also criticize and learn from the bad ones.

[The evil of human nature is also a form of terror in another sense.]

Whether it's the previous talk about gods and ghosts, the description of atmosphere and psychology, the terrifying scares, or the depiction of the evil of human nature, I now want to admit that Director Huan is indeed good at making horror movies. It gave me chills.

[What does it mean that the male protagonist has this dream at this time? 】

[Yes, I've discovered that Director Huan's films are interconnected. They're not mindless thrills for thrills' sake. They follow basic logic and every shot has a connection.]

[There's a hint of suspense amidst the thriller. There's something the Youtian people have said so many times, but I'm not sure if I should repeat it or not.]

Cang Tianren Hao Tianren: [It’s inappropriate to say that Director Huan said he loved her.]

Yan Tianren:? What did you love? But——

[I feel like I've discovered a hidden gem of a director. I love this new man!]

In addition, the people at Samsung seemed to have anticipated that there would be another rival in love in the near future.

Oh, damn, why is this man so sweet?

Not only that, in addition to knowing Xiao Cui's tragic life and experience, Shen Haoran also knew that Xiao Cui actually did not want to harm anyone. She was a kind girl. After turning into a ghost, she also took the lives of those evil people who had harmed her.

If it weren't for the seal, she would have left this place long ago to find her lover who was waiting for her.

That’s right, her lover didn’t leave either. He relied on the monsters in the mountains. Xiao Cui knew that after the hunter fell into the water and died, he was also unwilling to accept his fate, so he turned into Bai Sha. Later, he devoted himself to cultivation, just wanting to take her away.

Also because of the seal in the village and the regular groom sacrifices, Xiao Cui was not only trapped in this corner, but also her real groom could not come to greet her.

Before, in that haunted house, many of the scares were caused by Xiao Cui, not to scare them, but to drive them away.

Maybe it also means asking for help.

However, those people who had passed by, whether they were captured by the people of Wujia Village or were from Wujia Village itself, were too frightened to look directly at the dream, and some were even scared to death before they could be buried.

Shen Haoran, who still has a strong will to survive, is the first one. Most importantly, he is also kind. He does not hate Xiao Cui because of her ghost identity. The first thing he thought of when he dreamed of Xiao Cui was: Can I help her?

Of course, Shen Haoran soon faced the reality. The problem now was that he could hardly save himself.

What Shen Haoran didn't know was that these subtle emotions of his were also vaguely sensed by Xiao Cui.

Even his little bit of kindness moved the incompetent ghost bride, and she did not hesitate to use her own magic power to help them escape, although there was not much she could do.

All the villagers went out to celebrate the occasion. Although no one was watching Professor Gao and his three companions who were tied up in the woodshed, they also knew that Shen Haoran was probably in danger.

But even without the guards, the four of them were tied to four wooden sticks and could not touch each other at all, let alone help each other untie the ropes.

The current situation is that not only Shen Haoran is waiting for them to rescue him, but they themselves may also be in danger after the villagers return. What should they do?

Just as they were getting anxious, Wan Chuhang suddenly noticed something strange. The rope behind him seemed to have loosened.

Wan Chuhang shook his hands a few times with uncertainty, and it actually opened.

“Woo woo!”

When the others found that Wan Chuhang was able to move, they desperately made noises, signaling Wan Chuhang to help untie them quickly.

"Oh, right here, right here."

As Wan Chuhang untied Professor Gao, Lu Kai asked, "Chuhang, how did you untie the ropes?"

Wan Chuhang was also a little confused, but when he squatted down to help Lu Kai untie the ropes tied around his feet, his movements suddenly paused, and his eyes met with a small paper man in the corner.

"Were there any paper figures in this room before?"

It seems not.

Seeing the paper man again, and thinking of everything they had encountered before, the four of them turned pale. Only Wan Chuhang said uncertainly: "It was it that helped us untie the ropes just now. It helped us."

Moreover, compared to the previous paper figures that were modeled after real-life proportions, the small paper figure in front of them was less than the size of a palm, and its outline was only vaguely cut out. The visual impact was not as strong, and the fear of the crowd was slightly reduced.

But soon, everyone had no time to think about the origin of the paper man. Professor Gao put his crooked glasses back on his nose and quickly called out to everyone: "Let's go quickly, rescue Haoran, and get out of here!"

The other three looked at each other. They had no intention of abandoning Shen Haoran and running away by themselves.

But they didn't know where Shen Haoran was.

At this moment, the little paper man suddenly moved and made a waving gesture to the few people.

"Is he asking us to follow him?"

Tong Jiajia suppressed her fear and asked uncertainly, "Do you know where Haoran is?"

The little paper man twisted his body as if nodding, and waved again.

Should I go or not? Is it a trap?

"You guys leave the village first, I'll follow and take a look."

In a short period of time, Professor Gao, whose three views were shattered and then reorganized, gritted his teeth and thought that if he wanted to hurt them, he could just do it directly. There was no need to set a trap to lure them.

It’s just that Shen Haoran is his student, and Wan Chuhang, Lu Kai, and Tong Jiajia are also his students.

It was his decision to come to Wujia Village. He had already taken his classmates into danger. It was his responsibility as a teacher to rescue Shen Haoran, and all the other students had to do was to save their own lives and leave safely.

Professor Gao followed the little paper man out the door without hesitation, but what he didn't expect was to hear footsteps behind him. The classmates did not run towards the village entrance, but followed Professor Gao to chase the little paper man.

"you."

"Teacher, we came here together and we must go back together."

Tong Jiajia, who had been acting very scared, quickly put her hair back and looked around nervously, while deliberately teasing: "Teacher, you should have never seen a horror movie, right? In horror movies, it's forbidden to act alone at times like this. We must work together to escape!"

Everyone followed the little paper man and moved carefully in the village. However, after walking for a while, the little paper man's body suddenly fell limply, as if it was being tortured and burned, and half of its body turned to ashes.

"This is?"

The next moment, a new paper man appeared on the ground in the distance and greeted them again.

Several men chased after her. Tong Jiajia gritted her teeth, quickly bent down, tremblingly picked up the little paper man who looked like he was dead, and put it in her arms.

The other party seemed to be uncomfortable being close to the place with the talisman on the wall, and the other party helped them, at least, at least placed it farther away.

Led by the little paper man, they avoided the wedding procession and approached the grave in the back mountain from another route.

Although the dense forest at night was filled with all kinds of ghosts crying and wolves howling, fortunately, everyone had a safe journey and, under the escort of the little paper man, they finally arrived at the cemetery.

When they saw the newly filled grave, their hearts sank.

Professor Gao's voice changed and trembled as he said, "Hurry up, dig the soil quickly, maybe we can still make it in time."

Shen Haoran heard the noise and recognized the voices of his companions. His eyes, which had gradually lost their luster, brightened up again. He gathered his strength again and kicked the coffin lid hard.

"Bang bang bang bang bang bang."

He is still alive!

Professor Gao also heard the faint sound coming from the soil. A flicker of joy flashed across his face, and he called out to everyone, "Haoran is still alive. Try harder, we'll find him soon."

When several people, covered in dust and dirt, opened the coffin, in the small space, Shen Haoran, who was already drenched in sweat and still wearing red clothes, was helped by everyone to sit up, breathing heavily.

Suddenly, someone pulled at his trouser leg. Professor Gao looked down and saw the little paper man pointing in the direction away from the village, waving his arms and urging them to leave quickly.

"Ah, what is that?" Shen Haoran spoke in a hoarse voice.

Tong Jiajia raised her hand and picked up the little paper figurine, which was also covered in mud and dust and was doing its best to help everyone dig. Her initial fear of it was gone. Instead, she said, "They led us to you. Now they should be telling us which way to go, so we can leave quickly."

As for the luggage left in the village, no one planned to take it back. They had to leave quickly. What were they waiting for?

Knowing that Shen Haoran was out of strength, Wan Chuhang still had some energy left. He squatted down and said to Shen Haoran, "Haoran, come up quickly. I'll take you with me. Let's get out of here quickly."

By the time the villagers realize they are missing, they will be in trouble if they try to catch up with them.

Of course they could leave, and any normal person would want to leave. But recalling the sealed Xiao Cui and the paper figurine still held in Tong Jiajia's hand, urging them to leave, Shen Haoran thought silently:

What would happen to Xiao Cui if they left?

The people in Wujia Village have gone crazy. Without him as the groom, they will definitely find another person from the village to bury him. The seal has been reinforced again. After tonight's anniversary of her death, Xiao Cui will be sealed for at least another 10 or even 20 years, or even longer.

Every time Xiao Cui would kindly remind those who were captured by Wujia Village, but no one was kind enough to help her.

Just before, it was Xiao Cui who helped teach them.

Supporting himself and standing up, Shen Haoran's eyes became firm again.

He cannot be ungrateful and repay a drop of kindness with a spring of water.

"Professor, please take everyone down the mountain first. I have to go back to the village. I have something to do."

Professor Gao's face flashed with anxiety: "What's the matter? What could be more important than escaping right now?"

Shen Haoran pulled the groom's uniform off him: "Repay the favor!"

The entire Wujia Village was set up with a ghost marriage formation by the old Taoist priest. The center of the formation is where Xiao Cui's coffin is located. It is also because of the large formation that the ghost groom from the outside world cannot enter.

In the end, Professor Gao and the others did not choose to leave, and followed Shen Haoran into the village again.

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