Chapter 11 - The Woman

The others did not seem to notice anything unusual about Wang Xiao Yi. Their attention was focused on the corpse in front of them. 

"Great, we found a body so quickly," Xiong Qi praised Lin Qiu Shi's luck. "I thought we'd have to spend the night outside."

"Let's take the corpse back," Cheng Wen said, his emotions stabilizing somewhat at the sight of the dead body. He spat towards the ground and glared resentfully at Wang Xiao Yi. "You got lucky." 

Wang Xiao Yi's face filled with fear. She moved to hide behind Lin Qiu Shi, but this time he did not allow it. Grabbing her wrist, he said, "Don't be scared of him. We're here with you. Cheng Wen, what's wrong with you, frightening a young woman like that?"

"She's not even human, I saw everything!" Cheng Wen seemed to be suffering from some kind of mental break. He remained irritable and volatile. But after Lin Qiu Shi admonished him, he at least stopped threatening Wang Xiao Yi. Silently glowering, Cheng Wen and Xiong Qi began digging the corpse from the snowbank.

The body had been frozen in the snow for days. The mutilations, with entrails and spine visible where the waist had been smashed, were still gruesomely evident. The sight made one's scalp tingle. 

When Lin Qiu Shi had first arrived in this world, a scene like this would have made him vomit. But after several days of torment, he now gazed upon the corpse with barely a ripple of emotion, even feeling curious enough to examine it further.

"How do we get this back?" Xiao Ke asked. "Carry it?"

"Let's drag it," Xiong Qi suggested. "It may not be very respectful to the deceased, but it's better than two more living people dying." 

In the real world, carrying a corpse might not be an issue. But in this bizarre realm, who knew if the dead body on one's back might suddenly come alive? 

"Alright," Lin Qiu Shi agreed.

They tied ropes around the corpse and placed wooden planks beneath it to create a makeshift sled, easing transportation through the snow. 

"Let's go," Xiong Qi and Lin Qiu Shi said, each grabbing one end of the sled's ropes and pulling the corpse behind them as they started back up the trail. The women walked ahead. As they moved forward, Lin Qiu Shi kept his attention fixed on Wang Xiao Yi. 

He had deliberately grabbed her wrist earlier. Her skin had felt normally warm and human. Could what he witnessed in the woods have been an illusion? No...Lin Qiu Shi quickly dismissed his doubts. In this world, even illusions warranted extra caution - one wrong step could cost your life.

The mountain trail was narrow. Fortunately the corpse was not too heavy. By the time they reached the bottom, everyone breathed sighs of relief that the descent had passed without incident. 

"Hurry back," Xiong Qi said anxiously, glancing at the darkening sky. "It'll be full night soon."

"Right," Lin Qiu Shi replied.

After nightfall, deathly silence descended upon the village, with only the soft whisper of falling snowflakes accentuating the stillness. 

As the group moved forward, Wang Xiao Yi suddenly erupted into violent coughs up ahead. She seemed to be choking on something, bending over and coughing uncontrollably. 

"Wang Xiao Yi, are you alright?" Little Ke asked from beside her.

Wang Xiao Yi did not respond, only waving a hand lightly to indicate she was fine. But in the next instant, Cheng Wen, who had finally calmed down earlier, abruptly exploded towards her in a rage, iron shovel raised to smash her head.

"What are you doing!" Lin Qiu Shi managed to block Cheng Wen just in time. "Cheng Wen, have you lost your mind?"

Cheng Wen's eyes were bloodshot, more akin to a crazed beast without reason than a man. He howled hoarsely, "She's a monster! Don't stop me!!"

Wang Xiao Yi coughed more and more violently, half-kneeling in the snow. Her choking coughs grew so intense she began uncontrollably vomiting. 

Little Ke stood close by. When he saw what she was vomiting up, he couldn't help crying out in shock.

Lin Qiu Shi turned to look. To his astonishment, Wang Xiao Yi was vomiting up black hair, strands and strands of it, endlessly spilling from her mouth as she clutched her throat in agony. The hair seemed alive, writhing upon the snow.

"I must kill her! Or she'll kill us!" Cheng Wen had lost all control. A human pushed to the brink can erupt with frightening strength. In practically a blink, he had shaken Lin Qiu Shi off and raised the iron shovel, bringing it crashing down upon Wang Xiao Yi's head.

"Ahhh!" Wang Xiao Yi let out an anguished shriek as her skull split in two. Scalding blood sprayed the white snow, steaming faintly. Her vomiting ceased and she slumped over, body language still twisted in pain as she collapsed.

"Ha ha, she's dead," Cheng Wen said with grim satisfaction. He kicked Wang Xiao Yi's body and laughed. "Ha ha, now we can survive." 

No one spoke as the other four mutely gazed upon the ghastly scene. 

The vomited hair emerging from Wang Xiao Yi gradually faded away until disappearing altogether. Her eyes remained wide open, as if uncomprehending how she could have possibly died in this manner.

"Ha ha, ha ha," Cheng Wen laughed, dropping the gore-covered iron shovel with a thud. He looked around at the others - some fearful, some disgusted. "Why are you all looking at me like that? I saved you!"

"Swish swish swish..."

Just then, an odd swishing sound carried over the snow, breaking the silence.

Lin Qiu Shi turned towards the mountain forest, clearly hearing the strange noise - as if something was slithering through the snow towards them.

"What's that sound?" Lin Qiu Shi felt a deep unease. "Let's get out of here." 

"Right," Xiong Qi agreed grimly, his expression also changing. Without another glance at Cheng Wen or Wang Xiao Yi's corpse, they reflexively grabbed the sled ropes and raced towards the shelter of home.

This time no one held any energy in reserve. But the deep snow and heavy clothing still hindered progress. Lin Qiu Shi panted harshly yet dared not slow his steps, hearing the sounds grow ever nearer. 

Cheng Wen ran at the head of the group, reaching the house first. 

"Cheng Wen, open the door!" Xiong Qi yelled impatiently.

Inexplicably, instead of rushing inside to safety, Cheng Wen froze upon throwing open the door. Gripping his iron shovel, he began frantically hacking at the air, shrieking over and over, "Ghosts, there are ghosts!"

At first Lin Qiu Shi thought he must have suffered a mental break. But peering closer, he saw with astonishment that Cheng Wen did indeed have cause for alarm. His moonlit shadow had split into two - his own, and that of a long-haired woman holding his hand, their paired silhouettes silently lying stretched out upon the ground, seemingly detached from Cheng Wen's physical body.

"Ghosts! Ghosts!" Cheng Wen wailed piteously. Terror seemed poised to snap his last thread of sanity. In the end Lin Qiu Shi could bear it no more. Striding forward, he chopped Cheng Wen unconscious with a hand blade, finally silencing his crazed cries. 

"Hurry inside!" Ruan Bai Jie called from within the shelter. "That thing is almost here!"

In smooth coordination, Lin Qiu Shi and Xiong Qi carried in first the corpse, then Cheng Wen's limp form, just as the grating swish-swish sounds reached the doorstep.

Knock knock knock. Something knocked upon the door.

The four conscious people inside panted silently, no one answering. 

Knock knock knock. The knocking continued. Sensing they would not open, a woman's voice rang out. "Open the door, I'm so hungry. Can you give me something to eat?"

Upon hearing "hungry", Lin Qiu Shi immediately recalled the sinister mountain god the carpenter had mentioned.

"So hungry..." the woman muttered, voice rising louder and louder. "Please, just give me something to eat."

"Damn," Xiao Ke suddenly swore. "Look at the compound wall!"

Peering over, Lin Qiu Shi saw to his shock a disembodied head and a pair of black eyes jutting halfway over the wall - which stood at least two meters high. No ordinary human could manage such a feat.

"I'm starving," the eyes roved slowly, discovering them standing in the yard. "So hungry... If you don't feed me, I'll just have to help myself..."

"What do we do?" Lin Qiu Shi asked dryly. 

"Let's go," Ruan Bai Jie said. "Ignore her for now. First dump the corpse down the well, then we'll figure out our next step."

"Got it," Lin Qiu Shi agreed. He and Xiong Qi carried the corpse over to the well. Incredibly, Ruan Bai Jie even dared lean over the opening to peer inside. 

"Toss it in," she directed.

Lin Qiu Shi and Xiong Qi released their grip. The mangled corpse slid down the well shaft without a sound. 

Yet though no thud issued from below, other sounds swiftly emerged from the depths - unpleasant chewing noises. 

"So delicious," the woman outside the wall sighed. "So delicious..."

Lin Qiu Shi breathed a profound sigh of relief.