Back Mountain

The group stood on the small path not far from the wooden house, waiting for half an hour.

Guo Mu, bored, squatted on the ground and started playing with dry grass.

It was then that he saw the middle-aged man approaching from the direction of the wooden house, pushing a wooden cart.

The cart seemed to be filled with offerings, its top tightly covered with a piece of cowhide. The four corners of the hide were attached to protruding gears near the wheels.

The cowhide was stretched taut, without a single wrinkle.

"Let's... let's go." The middle-aged man struggled to push the wooden cart up the slope, using a stone to wedge the wheels.

"Big Brother, the village chief told us to wait for him here, and he gave us this." Zheng Wuyou stopped the middle-aged man, who was about to continue forward, snatched the stone from Wen Dian's hand, and revealed it to him.

Hu Yu wanted to stop her, in case it was some kind of life-saving charm.

But the middle-aged man was taken aback when he saw the stone.

Then, he immediately chuckled and added, "Oh, look at my memory, the village chief is so efficient. Outsiders need to pray before entering the back mountain, otherwise it's a great disrespect!"

Saying that, he re-wedged the wheels, intending to take the stone from Zheng Wuyou's hand.

Zheng Wuyou pulled the stone back, forcing a smile to her face, "Just tell us how to do it."

Seeing that she didn't intend to give it to him, the middle-aged man awkwardly withdrew his hand.

He grabbed the handles of the cart again, no longer showing any pleasant expression to the group.

His face was no longer amiable.

"Everyone bows once facing the northeast, southwest, and four directions, then throws the stone on the ground. If the clan emblem is facing up, it means the ancestors agree. If it's facing down, we are not responsible for what happens inside."

His true colors showed so quickly.

Zheng Wuyou tossed the stone in her hand and caught it, looking at the middle-aged man with amusement.

The middle-aged man felt a chill down his spine under her gaze, and quickly pushed the cart towards the back mountain.

He wanted to leave the back mountain before sunset.

"What a pain, so many rules in this place. Who's going first?" Hu Yu looked at the middle-aged man's retreating back, pouting in disdain.

"One person is enough." Zheng Wuyou caught the stone she had tossed.

Playing riddles, how interesting.

Hu Yu was first confused, then suddenly realized, "So, we need to find out which directions those are first?"

"Directions... didn't he just say east, west, north, and south?"

She had just heard it, how could she not remember?

Wen Dian licked his dry lips.

In these kinds of questioning scenes, people start to doubt their own memory.

Especially when they need to work backward.

"No, no, no, it's southeast, northwest!" Guo Mu made a thoughtful gesture again.

Who would have thought a minute ago that this sentence would stump everyone.

"Big Sister... I remember he said northeast and southwest." Wansi confidently stepped out from behind Zheng Wuyou.

Compared to when they first arrived, she was much bolder now.

"Yours is even more ridiculous, it doesn't feel right to bow like that." Guo Mu wanted to go and tap the little girl's head, telling her not to cause trouble.

When he saw Zheng Wuyou's eyes, he shrank back.

"Hers is clockwise." Zheng Wuyou reluctantly faced the direction of the setting sun to the west first, cupped the stone in her hands, and bowed counter-clockwise.

Finally, she stopped facing north.

She resolutely threw the stone towards the dirt. After rolling twice on the ground.

With a clink, the side without the pattern faced the group, facing the sky.

"Are they playing with us? They want our help but won't let us in!" Guo Mu, who had already guessed this outcome, angrily threw the dry grass on the ground.

Zheng Wuyou didn't answer him. Instead, she squatted down and patiently explained to Wansi, "Wansi, the task I'm giving you is arduous. You, along with Miao Laisheng, Big Brother, and Uncle Cai and Hu Yu, need to go to Old Zhu's family to rescue the eldest branch, can you do it?"

Wansi turned and met Miao Laisheng's gaze, nodding obediently.

"What do you mean? Are we splitting up?" Hu Yu didn't understand the logic behind her actions.

The old man who smoked opium clearly said they had to go to the back mountain. What if those who didn't go were punished!

"Yes, he only said there weren't enough people, he didn't say this was everyone's task." Zheng Wuyou stood up and handed the paper Zhu Li had given her to Hu Yu. "The Zhu family's words are not to be trusted. The stone facing down is the right way."

Zheng Wuyou stepped onto the path covered in dry yellow grass, following the tire tracks in the grass towards the back mountain.

Wen Dian and Hu Yu followed behind her.

Hu Yu eventually switched groups with Guo Mu.

Zheng Wuyou knew it was because Hu Yu was worried about her and didn't want to come alone, fearing the punishment might fall on her.

Crows overhead took flight and scattered, a colorful black feather drifted down in the sunlight, carried by the air currents.

The trees overhead formed an arch, blocking much of the light on the path.

The dry bark on the tree trunks looked as if it could peel off at any moment.

Along the way, they occasionally stepped on bark, making a crunching sound.

This startled many creatures in the surroundings.

The three of them walked about a mile along the path when Wen Dian leaned against a tree trunk, intending to rest for a moment.

But in an instant, they heard a strange noise from behind.

He turned back warily, only to find the old woman from Old Zhu's family and the old man who smoked opium, both hunched over as they walked down the mountain.

After walking several more miles, the three of them finally arrived at the Zhu family cemetery in the back mountain.

Wen Dian's legs were sore, and the two elders had climbed the mountain without stopping.

The three of them, afraid of falling behind, dared not rest and followed closely.

Inside the cemetery stood tombstones of various sizes and depths, scattered haphazardly. In the center of the cemetery was a particularly conspicuous area.

A large, circular stone plateau stood in the very middle of the cemetery, large enough for about three or four people to encircle.

The center of the stone disc was concave, with a raised cylindrical pillar inside. The pillar was covered in inscriptions they didn't recognize.

The inscriptions had turned black and were particularly striking in the slanting afternoon sun.

From the side, this device looked like a sundial.

But it wasn't as precise as a sundial.

"Since you're here, help him take the offering up!"

It was rare for the old man to not be smoking his opium when the three of them were present.

The old man gestured to the only male among the three, Wen Dian, to step forward and help the middle-aged man take the offering from the wooden cart.

After receiving Zheng Wuyou's permission, Wen Dian nervously stepped forward.

Together with the middle-aged man, he lifted the cowhide covering the four corners. But upon seeing the offering clearly, he froze.

The offering was nothing else...

It was the corpse they had placed in the wooden cabin—Sun Wu.

Sun Wu's hand dangled over the edge of the wooden cart. Zheng Wuyou recognized the watch on his wrist at a glance.

Sun Wu's face was pale as he stared at the sky, his unfocused eyes seeming to long for the figure running by the river.

Why was Sun Wu the offering?

As a companion for the day, Wen Dian couldn't bear to let his companion's corpse become an offering in this cemetery.

Wen Dian gritted his teeth and turned his head away, not daring to look into the cart.

However, the old man sternly scolded him for being lazy.

"This is a great disrespect to your ancestors!"