The entire funeral procession seemed to be proceeding in an orderly manner, with those carrying the coffin, scattering paper money, bowing their heads and wailing, and playing funeral music, all performing their respective duties, while the unpleasant sound of the suona horn resounded through the sky.
Feng Qian glanced at the bridal sedan chair stopped in the middle of the road, then at the funeral procession rushing towards him, and immediately thought of the plot of a classic horror movie— the Red-and-White Clash.
Suddenly, the funeral procession stopped in its tracks, and the coffin bearers stiffly turned their heads toward the ancestral hall.
In that instant, Feng Qian felt as if he were being pierced by countless gazes.
His body stiffened, and he strained with all his might to move his leg muscles backward, away from the crack in the doorway, trying to keep those ghostly things from watching him.
His forehead was soaked with cold sweat. It wasn't until he took a few steps back and was far away from the entrance of the ancestral hall that he came to his senses and gasped for breath. At that moment, he felt his eyes twitching uncontrollably!
You should know that he won these eyes at Lucky Casino, and since he got them, no matter how much he overused them, they have never shown any signs of reviving.
But now, he felt a restlessness in his eyes, which gave him an idea of just how terrifying the Red-and-White Clash outside was.
Feng Qian recounted everything he had just seen.
This time, Wen Jingyan and Du Yan heard funeral music and saw people carrying a coffin and paper money flying everywhere.
Feng Qian found it strange. In the previous wedding processions, they couldn't see the sedan chair bearers or hear the joyous music played on the suona horns. Why, then, could they see the coffin bearers and hear the mournful music in the funeral procession?
Wen Jingyan shook his head. "I don't know either. Maybe the ghosts at the funeral procession are more ferocious."
The arrival of night was like flipping a switch, finally revealing the terrifying side of the Mad Village to the group.
The Red-and-White Clash might just be the beginning; something even more terrifying might appear later.
Wen Jingyan pondered what to do next: continue observing the situation without moving, or take the initiative to intervene?
"The noise outside has decreased!" Du Yan reminded him.
Wen Jingyan listened intently, and the mournful suona music outside the ancestral hall, which sounded like the howling of Fierce Ghosts, was indeed gradually fading until it disappeared completely, and finally even the footsteps of the coffin bearers were gone.
"What happened? Why did they stop?" Feng Qian asked, trembling.
Wen Jingyan did not answer. Through the cracks in the doors and windows, a faint stench of corpses could be smelled. The sudden silence outside was like the calm before a storm, and the tense, oppressive atmosphere made it hard for them to breathe.
Both the bride's sedan chair and the funeral procession came to a halt. Wen Jingyan pondered whether the stagnation of the two processes was a Supernatural phenomenon or a disruption of some kind of natural order caused by the intervention of outsiders.
The surroundings were so quiet it was suffocating, with only the slightly uneasy breathing of the three people remaining.
Excessive quiet can be terrifying, as if a sharp sword is hanging overhead, ready to fall at any moment.
If Feng Qian could think of the Red-and-White Clash, Wen Jingyan, this seasoned veteran, naturally thought of it as well.
In a person's life, marriage and death are both major events, and neither weddings nor funerals should be taken lightly.
However, compared to each other, funerals have more taboos and rules. In the traditional China funeral culture, in addition to mourning, keeping vigil, and the first seven days after death, one of the most important parts of the funeral is the funeral procession.
During the funeral procession, a very important rule is that once the coffin is lifted, it must not be put to the ground. Putting the coffin to the ground is considered unlucky and will bring misfortune to future generations.
Moreover, the entire process from funeral procession to burial must be completed in one go, without any interruption. Under normal circumstances, unless there is a deep-seated hatred between the deceased and the person, no one would deliberately stop the funeral procession, for fear of offending the deceased and bringing bad luck upon them.
The wedding procession and funeral in the Mad Village are definitely not normal weddings and funerals; they must be a funeral procession for Fierce Ghost bride.
Perhaps these two groups shouldn't have appeared at the same time, but the arrival of outsiders in the village disrupted a certain balance, leading to unforeseen changes. The wedding procession and the funeral procession not only appeared simultaneously but also collided.
"Bang--"
The sound of wood being struck suddenly rang out, interrupting Wen Jingyan's thoughts.
"Bang bang--"
A series of impacts followed, heavy and powerful, each one seemingly capable of shaking one's soul, and the frequency increased rapidly.
Feng Qian seemed to realize something, his face suddenly darkening. "It's the coffin! Something is knocking on that coffin, and it's knocking from the inside!"
As he spoke, the golden light in his eyes flickered uncontrollably.
Du Yan was also terrified, his face turning pale. He immediately realized that the coffin must contain a super terrifying vengeful Fierce Ghost, and once the ghost escaped from the coffin, the three of them, the living outsiders, would definitely be the first to suffer.
Wen Jingyan thought about things more deeply. He had already considered that there might be more than one ghost in the village. After the Fierce Ghost in the coffin came out, it might trigger a series of changes like dominoes, thus releasing more Fierce Ghosts.
This aligns with his goal: to make all the Fierce Ghost active and spread, but only if he can ensure his own safety.
The ghost in the coffin outside was terrifying to him; he feared it would attack indiscriminately and kill him as well.
Feng Qian then said, "We either need to run away before that thing comes out, and get as far away as possible, or we need to stop it from coming out in time!"
Without even thinking, Du Yan said, "Of course, we should run!"
Before he could finish speaking, a sudden whooshing sound came from outside, followed by the banging of the coffin.
The situation has changed, and new changes have occurred; it seems that the ghost in the coffin has been temporarily contained.
Wen Jingyan narrowed his eyes slightly; he knew something must have happened outside.
After thinking for a moment, he went closer to the doorway and peered out through the crack.
His eyesight was not as good as Feng Qian's; he could only vaguely see that the bridal sedan chair was still stopped in the middle of the road, the curtain had not been lifted, but the sedan chair looked like it had been hit, and the whole thing was tilted.
The ghost bride inside the sedan chair showed no signs of reviving.
The signs that the bridal sedan chair had been moved caught Wen Jingyan's attention. He was unsure what force had caused such a change in the sedan chair; it could be the ghost in the coffin, or it could be Fierce Ghost from another party.
He hadn't forgotten that his goal was to spread the Supernatural phenomenon. With that in mind, he patted Feng Qian and Du Yan on the shoulder and prepared to open the door and go out.
At this time, the village was probably in a very sensitive phase, and any slight movement could alert the other Fierce Ghost in the village, which was exactly what Wen Jingyan wanted to see.
Since he was already in a dangerous situation, he still had the Supernatural Item given to him by the mastermind behind it all, which gave him confidence.
"You want to go out? Are you out of your mind?" Feng Qian disapproved of Wen Jingyan's risky actions.
Although Du Yan didn't say anything, his face clearly showed his disapproval.
Seeing this, Wen Jingyan sighed. His two teammates were more like mascots; they couldn't play any significant role, but they wouldn't hold him back either. Du Yan was just an ordinary person, and Feng Qian's eyesight was limited. Wen Jingyan preferred to believe in his luck rather than his eyesight.
Wen Jingyan said, "Don't try to persuade me. Staying in the ancestral hall indefinitely is not a solution. We can't just sit here and wait to die. If we delay any longer, something even more terrible might happen. If you two are afraid of danger, let me go out and scout ahead. Once I've confirmed it's safe, you can come with me."
Since things had already been said to this extent, Feng Qian and Du Yan naturally wouldn't stop them anymore.
Wen Jingyan slowly opened the door of the ancestral hall. A gentle night breeze blew outside. He lightly stepped out of the door with one foot. The moment his foot touched the ground, his muscles tensed, ready to strike.
Fortunately, nothing changed in the surroundings, which Wen Jingyan. At least it wasn't a killer rule like "walking means certain death."
As long as he isn't instantly killed by the inevitable death rule, he still has room to maneuver.
The ancestral hall was located in the center of the village. After Wen Jingyan left the ancestral hall, he kept a close watch on his surroundings and listened carefully to everything around him.
The appearance of these two terrifying ghosts, Red-and-White Clash, doesn't mean that only these two ghosts exist in the village. He hasn't forgotten the female ghost he encountered in the movie theater, the eerie villagers, the strange well, and the baby.
No one knows how many Fierce Ghost have yet to awaken in the village, so Wen Jingyan remains on high alert at all times, as this is a basic respect for his own safety.
He ignored the bridal sedan chair and coffin stopped in the middle of the road, and walked along the street, trying his best not to make a sound.
Feng Qian and Du Yan followed silently. They waited until Wen Jingyan had walked a distance and confirmed that it was safe to walk outside before leaving the ancestral hall to catch up.
The two were unsure of where the danger lay, but they knew it was safer to stay with Wen Jingyan.
At this point, Feng Qian had already vaguely realized that Wen Jingyan's behavior was somewhat strange. To put it nicely, he often took risks and tested things; to put it bluntly, he was constantly courting death.
Feng Qian couldn't understand Wen Jingyan's behavior. In this situation, he had no choice but to rely on Wen Jingyan, so he kept quiet and only kept a watchful eye on things.
Wen Jingyan deliberately slowed his pace, and after Feng Qian and Du Yan caught up, the three of them passed the location of the bridal sedan chair together.
Nothing happened.
The three of them breathed a sigh of relief and quickened their pace. As they reached the street corner ahead, a figure suddenly appeared, startling Wen Jingyan so much that he almost attacked. Fortunately, he recognized in time that the person was a living person, not Fierce Ghost or Ghost Slave.
She was a former internet celebrity streamer, Pinshishi.
"It's you?" Upon seeing the three, the Pinshishi's face was filled with panic, followed by an angry question, "Where exactly is this place? You bastards are you...?"
"Click--"
The sound of the pistol safety being pulled back rang out, and Du Yan drew his investigator's pistol, aiming it at the head of the Pinshishi.
In an instant, the Pinshishi silent, its fear intensifying. Perhaps due to some self-protective mechanism of the body, the excessive fear was transformed into anger, causing its eyes to turn red with rage.
Wen Jingyan and Feng Qian both turned their heads. Du Yan was very obedient and docile in front of them, but they didn't expect him to be so sharp and decisive when facing others.
Du Yan's expression darkened slightly. As an investigator who was well-versed in human nature, he knew that one couldn't reason with someone like Pinshishi, who was unreasonable and considered himself to have a certain social status. The only solution was to use force.
Otherwise, if you treat him with even a little politeness, he'll take advantage of you.
With the direct threat of a pistol, the Pinshishi immediately stopped its whining.
Wen Jingyan asked him, "Why are you alone? Where is your team?"
The Pinshishi honestly replied, "We encountered something strange and got separated."
"Strange thing? What strange thing?" Wen Jingyan asked again.
"The person just disappeared as I was walking, but I didn't notice at all. It wasn't until I was all alone, talking to myself, that I realized what had happened. It's so weird!" The Pinshishi's voice was very low, as if afraid of waking something.
His description carries a chilling, unsettling quality: people around him disappear one by one without him noticing.
Wen Jingyan thought about it. It might be the work of Fierce Ghost, or it might be that the Pinshishi was lying. Maybe his team was in danger and he abandoned them to run away. Of course, it's also possible that his team threw him out.
The two had completely different experiences, Wen Jingyan couldn't guess how much of what Pinshishi said was true or false, but there was no need to ask.
He then had the Pinshishi describe its experiences after entering the village, attempting to gather more information.
However, the Pinshishi couldn't say anything useful. He knew almost nothing about the Supernatural and had only come here to film videos. When faced with danger, he was on edge and couldn't do what the Ghost Tamer or the Investigation Bureau did to collect clues in Supernatural events.
Du Yan still held up his gun, his eyes questioning Wen Jingyan about how to deal with the Pinshishi.
Pinshishi is a somewhat clever person, but he doesn't know what Supernatural events are. It's too late to explain it to him on the spot. Du Yan is afraid that this kind of person will ruin things by thinking he's too clever. Moreover, when there is danger, Pinshishi will most likely be a hindrance. He won't survive himself and will drag others down with him. It's better to just get rid of him on the spot.
Wen Jingyan understood Du Yan's implication, but shook his head. This place was fraught with danger, surrounded by Fierce Ghost, and it was not advisable to cause any trouble. He suggested that the Pinshishi follow along, so that it could be used as a stepping stone if necessary.
At Wen Jingyan's signal, Du Yan put away his gun and Pinshishi a sigh of relief.
Feng Qian glanced at Du Yan furtively, thinking he was a bit foolish. Du Yan was the only ordinary person in the three-person team; in the event of an insurmountable danger, he would be the first to be abandoned. Instead of thinking of leaving the Pinshishi to shield him, he actually wanted to eliminate him?
It's hard to say. Perhaps Du Yan trusted Wen Jingyan too much, thinking he wouldn't abandon his teammates.
If Feng Qian were to tell Du Yan his thoughts at this moment, Du Yan would definitely think that Feng Qian was a bit foolish. The team had recruited a Pinshishi background was unknown. He had no knowledge of the Supernatural and might not be willing to obey Wen Jingyan's orders. In that case, the margin for error would actually decrease.