Master Jia lay quietly on the bed, his face ashen, his chest still.

I flipped his eyelids over and found that the surface of his eyeballs seemed to be covered with a thin, gray film, like a stagnant pool of water about to dry up, without a ripple.

I checked his breath with my hand again, but I couldn't feel any airflow.

However, a faint pulse could be felt in the carotid artery.

"how's it going?"

Xiaomi and Yunwei also quickly gathered around.

I breathed a sigh of relief and said that Seventh Master was still alive, but his pulse was too weak to be detected without careful observation.

Yunwei was quite frightened and asked me and Xiaomi to stay and take care of Seventh Master while she went to call the doctor to come and see him.

Soon, Yunwei walked in with an old man carrying a medicine box.

He looked like a barefoot doctor from the village; he wasn't even wearing a white coat.

The old man first took Jia Qiye's pulse, then opened Jia Qiye's eyelids to look at him, his brows furrowing into a knot.

"The old man was already weak and bloodless, and now he has been frightened, which has greatly damaged his vitality. I will prescribe some medicine first. Whether he can pull through depends on his fate."

As soon as the old man left, Xiaomi and Yunwei couldn't wait to ask me what had happened.

They have absolutely no recollection of it.

"Brother Chen, what exactly happened? Just tell me the truth."

Yunwei was so anxious that she stomped her feet, almost grabbing me to demand an explanation.

I sighed and briefly recounted the strange events that had occurred at the City God Temple.

Of course, the part about the little girl was omitted.

Xiaomi and Yunwei turned pale upon hearing this.

Yunwei couldn't help but shudder: "I didn't expect that what Grandma Sun said was true."

Why is it this old lady Sun again?

Why does she have so many things to do every day?

I asked her what Grandma Sun had said.

Yunwei swallowed and said, "Grandma Sun said that a theatrical troupe from another province came to the village before and performed for three days, but not many people came to watch."

"Because they sing Cantonese opera, which we Northeasterners can't understand at all. The singing style sounds so mournful, all that 'ee-yah-yah' sounds, it gives you the creeps."

She paused, then lowered her voice slightly: "The old lady said their performance was too scary. The scene was set up like a real hell, with all sorts of demons and monsters, baring their teeth and claws. Many children were so scared that they dared not sleep at night after watching it."

"And then?" I pressed.

Yunwei took a deep breath and continued, "One night, Li Erga, who was doing business in another city, came back from his trip. When he passed by the stage, he saw something and was scared to death!"

"When he died, it was exactly like a scene from a theatrical performance. His eyes were wide open, almost popping out of their sockets. His expression was terrifying, like he had seen a ghost."

"At the time, the village was in a state of panic. Everyone said that the opera troupe had summoned ghosts from the underworld, which was why people died."

"Later, Li Erga's family members were furious and led some villagers to smash up the opera troupe. A conflict broke out between the two sides, and for some reason, a fire suddenly broke out."

"That fire was huge. The entire opera troupe, along with many villagers, perished in the fire. Even the City God Temple was not spared and was burned to the ground."

Xiaomi, who was listening intently, couldn't help but ask, "And then what happened?"

Yunwei said, "Later, many people could still hear people singing opera in the middle of the night. Grandma Sun said that she had personally seen the opera troupe from before singing opera."

"A theatrical troupe?"

Xiaomi seemed to have thought of something, muttered something to herself, and then suddenly screamed.

“I remember now! I did see a lot of people in costumes and a pot of boiling oil. A lot of people were jumping into it, including me, Sister Yunwei, and Master Qi…”

Yunwei probably remembered as well, and her face turned deathly pale.

"Brother Chen, could it be that we've really met..."

She didn't dare say what came next, but I knew what she wanted to say.

I hummed in agreement and asked her, "Did your sister hear all this from Grandma Sun and then tell it to you?"

Yunwei was taken aback, then shook her head and said, "No! I'm the only one left in my family."

Before I could ask anything more, Yunwei suddenly slapped her forehead and said, "I almost forgot, I have to go buy medicine for Seventh Master and then go to town to see if I can find a doctor to come back. If I don't come back tonight, you'll have to work hard."

I said I'd go with you, so we could keep each other company.

Yunwei shook her head and said no, she would ride on the motorcycle next door, as there wasn't enough room for three people.

After saying that, she left in a hurry without even turning her head back.

After Yunwei left, only Xiaomi and I were left in the room to watch over the dying Master Jia.

Once I was sure Yunwei was far away, I quickly closed and locked the door.

"Chen Yan, why are you acting so suspiciously, like a thief? You're not planning to do something shady, are you?"

Xiaomi gave me a flirtatious wink, deliberately touched her thigh with her hand, and joked with a smile.

I glanced out the window to make sure no one was there before asking her, "Xiao Mi, when you and Seventh Master stayed at Yun Wei's house last time, did you meet any of her family members?"

No!

Xiaomi handed me a cigarette: "Sister Yunwei said her family members died a long time ago, why are you asking about this?"

I took the cigarette and said thank you, "I just wanted to ask if you've ever met Yunwei's sister!"

"Oh?"

Xiaomi immediately became interested, and a suggestive smile appeared on her face: "What? Want to have a threesome?"

I gave her a hard knock on the forehead.

He said, "Before I met you, Yunwei told me that she had a younger sister who often went to Grandma Sun's place to listen to operas, but now she says she doesn't, and then suddenly made an excuse to leave. It's obvious that she's deliberately avoiding this issue. Don't you find that strange?"

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