The three of them stared at the deformed man before them, each wearing a different expression.
"Is everything you're saying true?" Grandpa Bai looked the most shaken of all. He and his father had come to Living Coffin Village long ago. Back then, he'd only thought the villagers looked strange, but otherwise seemed like ordinary people. He'd never imagined that something so horrifying was hidden within this village.
"Every word." The man took a few more steps forward and stopped at the doorway. "I could have kept all of this hidden. The fact that I'm laying everything out now—that's my sincerity."
In a village filled with coffins, a deformed man dressed in burial clothes spoke words that sent chills down the spine.
Grandpa Bai and Old Wei exchanged a glance, and without hesitation, both turned their attention to Chen Ge.
"No rush. I want to ask him something first." Chen Ge gestured for the man to come inside. "What should I call you?"
"You can call me Ah Qing."
"Alright." Chen Ge dragged the Skull Crusher over to the man's side. "You say you can get us out?"
"Yes. I know the way, and I have the ability." The man seemed anxious, as though the time left for him was running short.
"If you know the way out and have the means to leave, why not just take the child and go yourself?" In Chen Ge's eyes, this was simply a transaction of mutual convenience. The fact that Ah Qing had come to find them of his own accord meant they must have something of value to offer him. "You're not just trying to use us as bait to draw the vengeful spirits' attention, are you?"
"I've never thought of anything like that!" Ah Qing waved his hands frantically. He had been trapped in the village for so long, with almost no contact with the outside world, and his expressions shifted wildly. He could barely conceal what he was really thinking.
"Then if it's not about luring vengeful spirits away, what do you need us for?"
"After a baby is born, during the first month, the woman surnamed Zhu personally comes to inspect the infant. If everything looks normal, she takes the child away on the spot. But there are exceptions." Ah Qing counted on his fingers. "Every year, on the anniversary of the day the female ghost threw herself into the well, the village holds a ritual ceremony. When that happens, the woman surnamed Zhu gathers every baby born in the village over the past three months into a single room and lets the female ghost choose a suitable offering."
"Lets the female ghost choose?" Chen Ge began to have second thoughts. The female ghost Ah Qing was describing had to be that most terrifying Red Coat vengeful spirit!
"Today is the day the female ghost threw herself into the well. The ritual is about to begin, and this is our chance! While the ceremony is underway, everyone will be gathered together to awaken the female ghost. All we have to do is sneak into that room before she wakes up, take the baby, and escape the village!"
"That's quite the fantasy." Chen Ge cut the man off. "The female ghost you're talking about was able to single-handedly slaughter an entire village. Even if we manage to escape, we'll be as good as dead."
"It's the best plan there is." Ah Qing's fingers dug into his own flesh. "That female ghost's grudge is directed solely at this village. She has no particular interest in outsiders."
"Is that so?"
Ah Qing nodded with difficulty. "Just as she never harmed the woman surnamed Zhu, I've never seen the female ghost attack an outsider. Once you find my child, take him and leave. I'll go back into the village the way I came. If you're accidentally spotted, I'll claim I saw you and lead them in the opposite direction."
"But here's the real problem—your child is from this village. If we take him along, the vengeful spirits will likely see us as targets too."
"If a vengeful spirit catches up to you…" Ah Qing loosened his clenched fists, his expression one of resigned acceptance. "…then you can put my child down and leave on your own."