Chapter 146 (Chapter 146) ...
Aside from hormonal imbalance caused by excessive stress, Pingyu was perfectly fine, both mentally and physically. After a long, bewildered look at the doctor, she mentally prepared herself and walked outside.
This time, however, Nezha was not in the waiting area.
As soon as she opened the door, she saw the boy already standing behind it. He shook off all the irrelevant people, and Pingyu's wrist tightened, held in Nezha's palm. She let him do as he pleased, and walked around to the corner of the corridor to look outside. The man who had attacked her with a knife, unconscious, had already been subdued by the concerned crowd. The young men who had been pestering Nezha to become their disciples noticed the gaze, waved their hands in their direction, and showed no intention of approaching any further.
Pingyu was surprised and asked him in a low voice, "What did you say to them?"
"It's nothing," Nezha said. "I said I'm looking for a wife, don't bother me."
Ping Yu's lips twitched. "And then?"
“They said that Master came to accompany his wife, and that a man who loves his wife so much will have a smooth life; he is truly a role model for us all,” Nezha said, then realized something was amiss. He asked suspiciously, “I didn’t agree to them becoming my disciples, so why are they calling me Master? Is becoming a disciple here just a matter of a single word?”
Pingyu:
How am I supposed to explain to Nezha that this is an abstract concept from modern times?
"Let's go first," she said stiffly, changing the subject. "It'll be troublesome if the police come."
It's true that acting bravely is a good deed, but Nezha doesn't have a registered residence; in modern times, he'd be a complete illegitimate person. It would be very troublesome to have to give a statement later.
Pingyu took Nezha down the elevator and quietly blended into the crowd before leaving. It was summer, and there weren't many places to go. Since they were already outside, Pingyu decided to take Nezha out for a while.
She quickly scanned the surrounding recreational facilities and finally asked, "Do you want to play video games or go to the water park?"
You can't exactly go shopping in the summer; she lives in the south, and the two of them would probably melt after just a few steps!
Nezha didn't know where either of them was, so he couldn't choose. He said, "You choose, I'm fine with either," and before Pingyu could complain that he was being "perfunctory," he took the leopard-skin pouch out of his pocket. He reached inside and blew on it in front of Pingyu's eyes. At first, Pingyu thought Nezha was playing a prank and squinted as he was blown in.
When she opened her eyes, she immediately noticed something was wrong.
Nezha's hands formed hooks, reaching into the bag to retrieve a huge ball. Ping Yu examined it closely and, as if playing with a doll, pulled the rotten, blackened infant from the small opening of the bag.
...
“This…” Having seen many wicked things in the Shang and Zhou dynasties, Ping Yu wasn’t afraid. She thought it looked familiar, frowned, and pondered for a moment before suddenly remembering its origin: “Isn’t this the baby next to that man?”
The infant spirit struggled and convulsed in Nezha's hands, like a live fish being scalded on a hot plate.
"Let me go!" It spoke in a strange, indistinct tone, making Ping Yu instinctively want to laugh. She made a "pfft" sound, as if pressing the pause button on the infant spirit. The festering infant spirit stared wide-eyed, its eyes almost popping out, carefully examining Ping Yu: "You can see me."
It spoke with certainty, and seeing that Pingyu was just a mortal, it tried to tempt him with words: "Help me get out, and I'll grant your wish. How about it?"
It blatantly spoke nonsense, which annoyed Nezha. As it spoke, the golden markings on the infant spirit's body gradually lit up. The light spread and intertwined in Pingyu's eyes, almost forming a net, its fine threads filled with malicious commands. However, for Pingyu, such tricks were all too commonplace. In the days before her tribulation was over, she had endured these incantations almost day and night.
"Not good."
The golden light emanating from the infant spirit abruptly stopped, and then a booklet was slapped across its face. The infant spirit's face was obscured by the medical record book in its disbelief. Pingyu felt a little uneasy; she asked Nezha, "Why did you bring it here?"
Even while she was asking questions, her hands kept moving. Nezha watched her fiddling with her phone and said, "This is the first time I've seen something speak in this tone. It's different from ordinary infant spirits. I found it quite interesting and wanted to take it back to study it."
“That accent sounds familiar,” Ping Yu said thoughtfully. “It sounds like it’s from Thailand.”
"Thailand?"
"It's Siam."
Wait a minute, didn't the Shang and Zhou dynasties have the concept of foreign countries yet?
Pingyu fell silent, listening as Nezha repeated the word "Thailand." The car arrived just then, and Pingyu and Nezha got into the ride-hailing vehicle. Since the medical record had struck the infant spirit's face so hard, it seemed to have quieted down. Each lost in their own thoughts, they remained silent for a moment. Pingyu had a feeling that there was a secret Thai technique related to infants, so he racked his brains, searching high and low. Finally, Nezha felt a brush against his arm. He glanced at her and saw her pull out her phone and type in a search term.
Thailand.
baby.
Evil magic.
After three keywords were entered into the search box, a large and eye-catching popular science encyclopedia title appeared. It read out three large characters: "Kumanthong".
Nezha glanced at the driver; he clearly felt the steel mount slowing down. Ping Yu raised his voice, exclaiming, "Yes, that's it!"
Which one?
Even in this technologically advanced modern world, there are still people obsessed with the mysterious. Perhaps it's precisely because of the interruption of tradition that sinister arts are more prevalent than ever before. Even Nezha had never heard of the three words Ping Yu spoke. However, anything containing the word "ghost" is considered heretical. Ping Yu pointed to the infant spirit he was holding and said, "He is an infant created using special secret methods from Thailand."
This term is not uncommon in horror works. Although it is mostly referred to as "Kumanthong", it actually has two categories.
1. Kumanthong.
These are the spirits of infants who died young and could not be properly appeased. Kind-hearted monks picked them up and placed them in sculptures. If anyone takes pity on them, they can take them home, provide them with good food and drink, and raise them as their own children.
2. Ghost Mantong.
Those with malicious intentions may seal the spirits of infants who could have been reincarnated into magical artifacts, maliciously binding them within spirit tablets or clay statues, turning them into slaves of their buyers and subjecting them to severe abuse. These spirits feed on resentment; the more they hate their owners, the stronger they become, and the more capable they are of fulfilling their owners' wishes.
The so-called "ghost child" is nothing more than what people call "raising a ghost child." Although methods of raising infant spirits existed in the past, they mostly used aborted fetuses that couldn't be reincarnated. Almost no evil sects would use children who are capable of reincarnation for their practices; firstly, it's too immoral and might incur divine retribution; secondly, the resentment and loyalty of these children are insufficient, resulting in a less powerful product. So why do those who create Kumanthong do the opposite, engaging in such thankless and arduous tasks? Before he could ask, the driver in the driver's seat joined the conversation:
"Hey, are you two kids going to get a talisman too?"
Ping Yu's mind raced, and she pressed down on Nezha's hand. She subtly shook her head at her boyfriend, then put on a "curious" face and said, "Yes, Uncle, my boyfriend and I are very nervous about the college entrance exam this year, and we were thinking of getting a talisman to protect us!"
"Hey, everyone else gets invited by their parents, why did you two have to do it yourselves?"
"Mom and Dad are busy!"
How are your studies usually?
“That’s fine. It’s not that I’m being mean, but those with really bad grades shouldn’t be asked. After all, even last-minute cramming requires some ability,” the driver said, his interest piqued when he heard that two high school students were going to get amulets. He glanced at the destination on the car’s navigation and kindly reminded them, “Why are you two still going to the water park? The Thai master’s ritual site is in the opposite direction from his. It’s very crowded there, and if you don’t go soon, you might not get a number today.”
"Ah!" Pingyu feigned nervousness. "What should we do then? Can we find a temporary destination?"
“Sure, you can just change the destination.” It was a red light, and the driver turned around and pointed, “Change it to No. 44 Baishui Street.”
Author's Note: I got off work too late yesterday and forgot to post it after finishing writing. Oh crap, there's another chapter today!
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