Under the ghost Qiu Fangzheng's slow narration, Li Hai gradually learned the truth.
It turned out the other man had been dead for decades.
Back then, Qiu Fangzheng had still been living in Ox-Horn Town, working as a small peddler who went from street to street. Then a tragedy struck his family.
His father had fallen ill from years of hard work and passed away.
Though grief-stricken, Qiu Fangzheng was the eldest son, so naturally he had to take responsibility for arranging his father's funeral.
That meant he had no choice but to deal with the Zhou Family.
In Ox-Horn Town, the Zhou Family monopolized every wedding and funeral in town.
Without their permission, no one could get married or arrange a funeral.
If anyone dared to marry in secret and was discovered by the Zhou Family, they would be arrested and charged with adultery, then stuffed into a pig cage and thrown into the river to drown.
Funerals were no different.
If anyone dared to secretly dig a grave and bury a body on their own, and the Zhou Family found out, they would claim the burial had ruined the feng shui of their fortified manor. Then they would dig up the corpse and leave it in the wilderness for passing beasts to devour.
Whether for a funeral or a wedding, there was only one way to get the Zhou Family's approval: pay up.
For funerals, the Zhou Family had set the fee at one hundred silver dollars. Once the full amount was paid, the family could receive a plot of land to bury the deceased.
Unfortunately, Qiu Fangzheng's family was poor and had no money, so he could only borrow here and there.
In the end, he had borrowed from everyone he knew, but had managed to scrape together only eighty silver dollars.
Since the sum fell short, the Zhou Family naturally refused Qiu Fangzheng's request to arrange the funeral.
As it happened, the Zhou Family member who came to Qiu Fangzheng's house that day took an immediate liking to his younger sister.
This Zhou Family member, Zhou Yugen, hinted that if Qiu Fangzheng let his sister accompany him on an outing for a couple of days, his father's funeral expenses would be waived entirely.
Qiu Fangzheng naturally refused such a revolting demand. Zhou Yugen simply smiled and left on his own.
That very night, bandits broke into Qiu Fangzheng's home.
Qiu Fangzheng himself was beaten, the money he had borrowed with such difficulty was stolen, and even his younger sister was taken away.
As they left, the bandits tossed out one last remark: "If you'd known this would happen, why didn't you agree in the first place?"
Those words made Qiu Fangzheng realize at once that Zhou Yugen was surely the one behind his predicament.
He didn't stop to consider the consequences. That very night, he went mad with rage and headed straight to the Zhou Family to settle the score.
But when he reached the Zhou Family's mansion, Zhou Yugen denied everything. He accused Qiu Fangzheng of making baseless accusations and had the mansion guards beat him and throw him out.
After taking another beating, Qiu Fangzheng returned home in a daze. There, in his dilapidated house, he found a letter. It said that if he wanted to find his younger sister, he should go to Fish-Plate Mountain.
"Fish-Plate Mountain?"
Li Hai asked, "You mean the mountain we're on now?"
Qiu Fangzheng slowly nodded. "Yes..."
"What happened after that?" Li Hai continued. "Did they kill you on this mountain?"
Qiu Fangzheng nodded again, then continued his story.
After reading the letter, he had been frantic with worry and had left home at once, heading straight for Fish-Plate Mountain without a second thought.
He hurried onward through the night, and just before dawn, Qiu Fangzheng finally reached the foot of Fish-Plate Mountain.
But the place was dark and deserted. Aside from a few bird calls, there wasn't another soul in sight.
With no other option, Qiu Fangzheng had to enter the mountain.
But the moment he did, he walked straight into an ambush.
In the chaos, Qiu Fangzheng had no idea how many people there were, and couldn't make out who they were.
Then they severed the tendons in his hands and feet, beat him half to death, and tossed him beside a stream deep in the mountains.
In the end, a pack of wild wolves tore him apart and devoured him on the streambank. He died with hatred in his heart.
"I... don't hate... the wolves."
Qiu Fangzheng's jawbone slowly opened and closed. "I only hate... Zhou Yugen."
After finishing his story, he suddenly rose and knelt before Li Hai, begging him:
"My lord, I know... you possess great powers. I beg you... help me take revenge."
As if afraid Li Hai would refuse, Qiu Fangzheng immediately offered his bargaining chip:
"I... have wandered... Fish-Plate Mountain for decades... and discovered... an ancient sect's ruins deep within..."
Li Hai cut him off. "You mean that if I help you get revenge, you'll tell me where the ruins are, right?"
Qiu Fangzheng nodded. "Yes... In the ruins... there are gold and silver... precious pills... divine weapons... cultivation techniques..."
"Very tempting, but..."
Li Hai asked, "What if I find the ruins on my own?"
"You... won't find them."
Qiu Fangzheng shook his head. "The ruins... sank deep underground... in an earthquake... the mountain closed over them... no paths or caves lead there... only one winding trail... I alone know it..."
"So you're saying..." Li Hai said, "the earthquake buried the ruins beneath all of Fish-Plate Mountain, and there's only one path that leads to them—a path only you know."
"Not buried..." Qiu Fangzheng corrected him. "The earthquake... made this mountain open its jaws... and swallow the sect... it fell underground... and became ruins."
"That's strange. How do you know all this so well?"
Li Hai asked curiously. "Could it be that the sect was swallowed by Fish-Plate Mountain right in front of you and then sank underground?"
In answer, Qiu Fangzheng said, "I... once entered the ruins... Someone from the sect... left behind an inscription... It says... they perished... during the Great Xuan era."
"The Great Xuan era?"
Li Hai stared at him in bewilderment. "What's that? An era name?"
"I... didn't know... either."
Qiu Fangzheng spoke haltingly. "Later... over the decades... I asked others... again and again... and gradually learned... Great Xuan... was the dynasty before Great Jing... The Jing Dynasty... lasted a thousand years... so the Great Xuan... ruins of this sect... are over a thousand years old."
"The Great Jing Dynasty lasted a thousand years?!"
Li Hai was even more baffled.
What did it even mean for a feudal dynasty to last at least a thousand years?
In the five thousand years of history back in his homeland, no dynasty had ever lasted that long.
For a moment, Li Hai didn't know which dynasty to compare it to. All he could do was marvel, "That's incredible."
"All right."
Li Hai came back to himself and said, "I'll help you."
Qiu Fangzheng bowed down and knocked his head to the ground again.
"So how do you want me to help you?" Li Hai asked again. "Should I kill Zhou Yugen alone, or wipe out the entire Zhou Family?"
"Kill Zhou Yugen," Qiu Fangzheng said darkly. "As for... the rest of the Zhou Family... do as you please, my lord."
"Good." Li Hai nodded. "Understood."
"And one more thing..." Qiu Fangzheng raised his skull-like face and pleaded. "My lord... please help me find out... what happened to my younger sister."
"Alas..." Li Hai shook his head with a sigh. "I can, but it's been decades already..."
He didn't finish the next sentence. It was too cruel.
"But I..." Qiu Fangzheng insisted. "I only want to know... what happened to my sister."
"All right." Li Hai nodded. "I'll look into it for you."
"Thank you, my lord!"
Qiu Fangzheng knocked his head hard against the ground, again and again. "Thank you... thank you, my lord!"
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