jackpoker

On the day I was born, my village was struck by a series of bizarre events. First, Old Wang's white-haired dog, which had been with him for eight years, donned a black robe and stood upright, wandering the streets before stopping at my house to bow. Meanwhile, a horde of unusually large rats with blood-red eyes scurried through the streets, gathering at my doorstep and refusing to leave.

This unusual sight enraged the village cats, sparking a fierce battle. Contrary to their usual behavior, the rats fearlessly clashed with the cats, leading to a gruesome scene with casualties on both sides. The villagers watched in stunned silence, while the elderly commented that such unnatural occurrences were omens of chaos as per ancient beliefs.

That night, the strange occurrences continued with eerie opera singing emanating from an open space near my home. Curious onlookers ventured out only to discover the performers were figures made of paper, and the audience was a motley crew of supernatural beings surrounding a coffin. Inside the coffin, an old woman watched the spectacle with great interest.

This sight terrified the villagers, who fled back to their homes, praying fervently for divine intervention from every deity they knew. The entire village, including my family, spent a sleepless night in fear.

The following day, the creatures had vanished, leaving behind a mess that confirmed the night's events were not a dream. In rural areas, such supernatural incidents were often taken seriously, causing widespread alarm and speculation about a curse on my family.

My grandfather, dressed in tattered clothes, rushed from the mountains and without explanation, began to beat my father and uncles severely, afterwards holding me and weeping bitterly. He ominously remarked that I was born a "bearer of sins, despised by both humans and ghosts," hinting at a mysterious affliction tied to my existence.

That night, I developed a high fever and struggled between life and death, with my grandfather and uncles fighting off a malevolent spirit attempting to drain my life force. They fell ill from the ordeal, taking a month to recover.

Years later, I learned of my grandfather's reasons for naming me Zhang Jiu Zui, meaning "Nine Sins," reflecting the burdens I carried from birth. Despite my introverted nature, inherited from my father's quiet demeanor, my grandfather took pride in my disinterest in worldly affairs, often taking me to his well-kept but humble abode filled with books on exorcism, folklore, and esoteric knowledge.

I spent years immersed in these tales of demons and diviners, shaping my understanding of the world until academic pressures from high school forced me to visit less. My high school years ended in disappointment when illness ruined my chances at university exams, an event my grandfather oddly celebrated as fortunate.

After deciding to retake the exams, my life took an unexpected turn when several luxury cars arrived at our village, heading straight for my grandfather's humble home. The well-dressed occupants from the cars approached with formal documents, knocking on his door with a sense of urgency and respect.

The Monster Hunter's Notes

The Ghost-Devouring Mirror of Zhong Kui? I actually knew about this!

Grandfather's books had recorded its history - a special bronze mirror from the Qing Dynasty, used for protecting homes and warding off evil spirits.

The mirror was polished bright on its face, while its back bore an engraving of Zhong Kui devouring ghosts. The legend went back to the Qing Dynasty, when a wandering exorcist encountered a fierce ghost that had escaped from the underworld by reversing its path on the Yellow Springs Road.

The exorcist was powerless against it, nearly meeting his end, when Zhong Kui himself appeared, hunting escaped souls. He captured and devoured the ghost in three swift moves. By chance, a bronze mirror reflected this moment, creating the engraving on its reverse. The exorcist claimed this miraculous mirror, using it to triumph over evil spirits thereafter.

While the story's truth was lost to time, the mirror itself was real enough - and incredibly powerful. No supernatural creature, be it ghost, demon, or monster, could withstand its power.

Its last known appearance was in the 1990s in Southern Fujian, purchased by a feng shui enthusiast for over three million yuan. When the businessman went bankrupt and fled overseas, his creditors ransacked his home, and the mirror vanished.

When I first read about this, Grandfather had sighed deeply, saying if our family had owned such a mirror, he wouldn't have needed to guard me day and night for eighteen years. Even that white-haired vampire wouldn't have dared try to drain my essence from our rooftop.

I explained this to the Wu brothers, who grew excited at my knowledge. They revealed they'd taken a job - someone had spotted the mirror in a mass grave site in the Taihang Mountains. A collector was offering five million yuan for it.

"With that money," Old Wu explained, "we could help our nephew buy a house in the capital."

I was stunned. A mass grave? The Ghost-Devouring Mirror? This seemed insane.

Second Wu added that the job was tricky - the Taihang Mountains spanned several provinces, making the grave site hard to locate. Plus, with such a reward, others would be hunting the mirror too.

They offered me a partnership - a hundred and fifty million yuan for my expertise. But I warned them of the dangers. The mirror wasn't in a mass grave by accident - it was likely containing powerful spirits. Finding it would be the least of their problems.

Wu brothers revealed their motivation: they were destined to die childless in this profession. Their nephew was their only hope for ancestral offerings after death. They needed this money for his future.

I sighed inwardly. Those in our profession often met bad ends, their bodies corrupted by constant contact with dark forces. Yet they all feared becoming wandering ghosts, uncared for after death.

I declined partnership but offered advice: hire a feng shui master to locate the site, never look directly into the mirror lest Zhong Kui devour your soul, and prepare something to contain the spirits that would be released when the mirror was removed.

The brothers exchanged glances. As I noticed we weren't heading toward the funeral shop but out of the city, realization struck: "Oh sh-"

Second Wu sprayed something in my face. As consciousness faded, I heard him whisper, "Brother, will Master He come after us for taking the boy?"

I awoke later with a splitting headache, my limbs weak.

"Apologies, Brother Zhang," Old Wu said. "But we know our limitations. Without your help, we'll never get that mirror."

Chapter 11: Death for Wealth, Birds for Food