"Disappeared?"
When the incense burned out and Granny's prayers suddenly stopped, Hu Ma felt a sudden dizziness.
The bone-chilling cold wind around him vanished just as suddenly as it had come, without any warning.
Hu Ma once again felt the warmth emanating from the old fire pit, sweat rushing out impatiently.
Looking again, those eerie human figures in the old fire pit were completely gone.
It was as if he had just witnessed an illusion.
Granny sat silently by the fire pit, not speaking. After a long time, she slowly began to pack her things.
Little Hongtang quietly approached, pouting, seeming a bit unhappy.
"What's the situation now?"
Hu Ma didn't dare make a sound, just quietly observed, stealthily shifting from a kneeling to a sitting position.
He didn't understand what this meant and dared not speak rashly.
"Granny Hu..."
At this moment, the Old Clan Chief and a few others, who had been watching from below the slope, gathered their courage and came over when they saw the scene. Looking at Granny as she lowered her head to pack her things, they seemed troubled. "After all, Brother Hu Shan wasn't buried in the old fire pit back then. The ancestors don't recognize Little Huma. How about we think of another way to help Little Huma..."
"They will recognize him."
Granny suddenly spoke with a cold face. "Even if the ancestors don't recognize him now, once I'm in the fire pit, they will."
"Don't think about other ideas; he's the last seed of the Hu Family."
"I won't let anything happen to him, nor will I let him hide in the village all his life, unable to even step out the door!"
"..."
"Granny, you misunderstand. No one wants anything to happen to Little Huma." The Old Clan Chief and others hurriedly explained as they helped Granny up and spoke to her aside. "Over the years, Brother Hu Shan and you have done a lot for the village, and everyone has seen it. But after all, the ancestors aren't living people, and they can't tell the difference..."
"You should come over here first; we have some things to discuss with you."
"Perhaps there's another way to get the ancestors to recognize Little Huma..."
"..."
"..."
Watching as Granny was aided to one side, seemingly engaged in a tense conversation, Hu Ma quickly stood up from the ground, helped Granny by carrying the packed bundle, and stood aside.
Moving away from that eerie old fire pit, he finally asked Little Hongtang the question weighing on his mind, "The ancestors don't recognize me; what does that mean?"
"..."
"Brother Huma, did you really forget everything?"
Little Hongtang tilted her head, curiously looking at Hu Ma, which made him feel a bit anxious.
Luckily, Little Hongtang didn't ask more, and cheerfully explained, "The old fire pit is where the ancestors are burned!"
"All the elderly who pass away in the village must be placed in the old fire pit to be burned."
"It's been like this for generations, except for those who were unruly during their lives, like Grand Master Cui. He stole from people while alive and ate things he shouldn't have, so the Cui Family despised him and wouldn't let him enter the old fire pit, opting to find a place outside the village to bury him instead."
"Even with that, Granny was afraid he'd cause trouble, so she found a coffin board to keep watch over him."
"..."
"Such a custom exists in the village?"
Hu Ma recalled the densely packed human figures he'd seen in the old fire pit, realizing their identity.
He felt a chill down his spine but was also confused. Why burn so many ancestors in one spot, and what's the purpose of the old fire pit?
"To protect the descendants..." Little Hongtang chirped with a smile. "The ancestors within the old fire pit have spirits; they can ward off evil, drive away ghosts, and bless the descendants."
"The more ancestors burned, the more effective it is."
"Normally, they protect the village, making outside evil spirits hesitant to come in."
"If someone in the village is attacked or entangled by evil spirits, just coming to the old fire pit to pay respects will suffice. Even at night, if you happen to have to leave the village, grab a handful of ashes and put it in your pocket; it's more effective than any Amulet..."
"..."
"Is that possible?"
Hu Ma thought about it carefully and found it increasingly reasonable.
Initially, hearing about so many people being burned in the old fire pit made him feel somewhat horrified. It was clearly a place full of strange occurrences and malevolent spirits, yet so many people were burned there. How could one feel at ease?
But now he understood that the village's survival had its own profound reasoning.
Since the world had so many evil spirits, naturally, there were ways to deal with them.
And whether they were celestial deities or anything else, there was nothing more reliable than seeking the protection of one's own ancestors, right?
But if grabbing a handful of ash and carrying it could ward off evil, why was his situation so troublesome?
"..."
"Brother Huma is different from others, as there are no Hu Family members in the old fire pit..."
Little Hongtang's sentence unlocked Hu Ma's doubts, making him understand his current awkward situation.
"The Hu Family is an outsider, with no ancestors buried in the old fire pit."
"Granny wanted to talk to the ancestors and ask them for help to protect Brother Huma, but the ancestors refused!"
"So Brother Huma is attacked by evil spirits with no one to intervene; taking ashes out of the village doesn't work."
"But once Granny passes away and is buried in the old fire pit, the ancestors will recognize Brother Huma, and then someone will protect you..."
"..."
"So that's how it is..."
Little Hongtang's innocence and childish voice lacked the clarity of an adult, but Hu Ma understood.
His original self had the awkward problem of not having ancestors buried in the fire pit. Logically, the Hu Family had been in the village for more than twenty years and contributed significantly.
Even his original self's father died for this village.
Yet, his father died outside the village and his body was never recovered, so there was no way to be burned there.
Granny intended to ask the ancestors for support, but unfortunately, they ignored the request.
The Old Clan Chief might have guessed this, worrying that Granny would be heartbroken, hence his apparent anxiety.
"..."
"..."
Lifting his eyes to the gray, bleak world, he recalled the evil spirits he had encountered that day, and even those things that had just emerged from the old fire pit. He was not at ease despite having figured things out; a shiver ran through him.
By now, his skepticism of this world was no longer firm.
Yet, in this world filled with unease, he couldn't find the slightest sense of security.
Perhaps he could only rely on this Granny?
At least from her sincere prayers earlier, she seemed genuinely concerned...
... No, she was concerned about her grandson, but he was just a counterfeit.
Hu Ma dared not express this. His head was previously muddled, but now it had cleared. Though uncertain of the current situation, his survival was a reality.
In the depths of his mind, traces remained of the empty, unattached feeling from before he awoke.
It was an immense fear and uncertainty, a helplessness with no control over fate.
Compared to the solid sense of being 'alive' now, that was the most terrifying fear of all.
So, he couldn't speak.
That's life; survival is the greatest instinct of humankind.
Since he was alive again, he absolutely did not want to die.
"..."
"..."
Just as Hu Ma was thinking, Granny finished her conversation in the distance with the Old Clan Chief and others, then slowly walked back. Gaining some understanding of his circumstances, Hu Ma quickly grabbed the bundle and met her, taking the initiative to help her.
"Granny, shall we go back?"
"..."
"Let's go back."
Granny didn't say much, just nodded. Supported by Hu Ma, she slowly descended the slope.
Suddenly, she turned her head. "Did you just see the ancestors?"
Hu Ma was somewhat surprised and looked into Granny's eyes, recalling those strange shadows.
Was he not supposed to see them?
"So you did see them..."
Granny, observing his puzzled expression, seemed even more fatigued, and murmured, "Having undergone soul stabilizing, you shouldn't have been able to see the ancestors, and even Little Hongtang shouldn't have seen them."
"Is this..."
Hu Ma glanced at the little girl holding his hand, a chill running through his heart. "That's indeed a ghost..."
Was he the only one who saw her?
Walking along this road, was he essentially holding a cloud of air in others' eyes?
"Granny, everyone in the village says that only those close to death can see the ancestors in the old fire pit, but Brother Huma also saw them. When I don't want Brother Huma to see me, he still can." Hearing herself being mentioned, Little Hongtang, who was walking beside them, suddenly said, "So is Brother Huma close to dying?"
"No..."
Granny slowly shook her head, softly saying, "Not only can those close to death see, but also those who have just come back to life."
"Hmm?"
Hu Ma's heart suddenly leaped in shock, a flash of doubt crossing his eyes before he quickly lowered his head.
"It can be cured..."
Granny didn't turn to look at him, speaking slowly as if murmuring to herself, "After all, having just circled the Ghost Gate, it's normal for your body to be weak. When yin souls return to life and encounter yang qi, it feels as if they're plunged into a boiling pot of oil. The Divine Soul growing within the flesh is akin to being skinned alive and having your tendons pulled out."
"One ordeal after another, you've already come through, so the rest is nothing. Just nourish yourself well, eat more meat, and you will surely recover..."
Hu Ma's back was drenched with cold sweat as he stiffly helped her, carefully making their way back.