Chapter Eighty-Nine: Dreams and Reality

My brother, my brother, it is all my fault. I did not take good care of my sister-in-law.

Just as I was crouched there, aching so badly that I did not know what to do, Shangguan Waner knelt and tried to comfort me.

The scene in my mind came to an abrupt halt. I saw Waner’s face, soaked in tears. I seized Shangguan Waner’s hand at once. “Waner, Waner, tell me, what really happened to Wang Ying? Tell me.”

“I was watching television, and then suddenly the wind rose. The gale grew fierce, and the front door was blown open all at once. My sister-in-law’s body was carried away by the whirlwind,” Shangguan Waner said through her tears.

“Liar. You are lying. Did you hide Wang Ying’s body somewhere? What are you plotting?” I flung Shangguan Waner’s hand away with all my strength, and only then did my tears begin to fall.

Shangguan Waner bowed her head and wept. Wei Qi came over and put an arm around my shoulder. “Da Chuan, don’t talk nonsense. The wind really did rise just now, and it was violent. The air was filled with yin energy. Something about it was unnatural.”

What I had said was only the outburst of my anxiety. Shangguan Waner had always been beyond reproach toward Wang Ying and me; she had selflessly given even the blood amber and the body.

“Brother, don’t cry. How about we all go out and look? Maybe the wind blew Sister-in-law nearby.” Shangguan Waner wiped at her tears as she spoke.

I seemed to understand at last, and rushed out the door. Wei Qi and Shangguan Waner joined me, and so did Xuan Li and Qing Ting. In the end, even the village head brought people to help search. Until daybreak, there was no trace of Wang Ying’s body.

By the time I returned home, I was already exhausted in body and spirit. What had happened so suddenly had completely broken me. Wang Ying’s soul had been lost, but at least I could still see her body; as long as her body remained, I could still feel there was hope. But now even her body had vanished. What did this mean? Was Heaven punishing me?

I fell ill, with a fever of one hundred and two degrees. Wei Qi found a doctor for me, but I had no mind for injections or medicine. Instead, I dragged myself through the fields, wandering aimlessly. I kept feeling this must be some cruel joke. I knew Wang Ying would not leave me; she was waiting for me somewhere.

Wei Qi stayed with me the whole time. He mobilized everyone in the village to help search for her, yet still nothing was found.

In the end, I too collapsed. On the second night after Wang Ying disappeared, I fell down with a fever that would not break, my mind hazy and unsteady. I was forced to take an IV drip. My lips were covered in blisters, my throat ached terribly, and I had not eaten for a day and a night. Shangguan Waner made a delicious meal for me, but I had no appetite at all.

Late at night, Li Dainian came.

Looking at me lying in bed, Li Dainian let out a heavy sigh. “Da Chuan, all of this is fate. The calamity of humankind is about to come.”

I lay there, with no desire to listen. The calamity of humankind had nothing to do with me. All I wanted was Wang Ying. By then I had grown somewhat resentful toward Li Dainian. If he had not insisted that I go keep Yueyue company, Wang Ying’s body probably would not have gone missing. I had the Dragon Abyss Sword and the Sky-Thunder Palm Technique; who would dare steal Wang Ying’s body from in front of me?

“大师，您别说了，这些跟我没关系。”I really did not want to hear any of it anymore.

“Da Chuan, whether you want to hear it or not, you must. You are not an ordinary person. You are the rarest kind of pure yin body, seen perhaps once in a thousand years. If you do nothing, humankind will truly be finished. That girl went back to the burial ground the very night you left and continued cultivating the Soul-Sucking Art. At that pace, she may fully take shape in less than half a month. By then, she will be able to snatch souls with a mere gesture, and there will be nothing humanity can do to stop her.” Li Dainian sat beside me and spoke patiently.

I turned my face away. “Master, this really has nothing to do with me. There is not only me among those who walk between yin and yang in China. Why won’t you go keep watch over her? Why must it be me? My wife’s soul is gone, her body is gone, and who has done anything about it?” As I spoke, a sharp pain pierced my eyes. I had cried too much; even the slightest stir of feeling made my eye sockets ache.

“Da Chuan, have you thought about who took Wang Ying away? Whether it was her body or her soul, someone must have stolen them, and there can only be one reason: to keep you from getting close to that girl, to keep you from stopping her cultivation of the Soul-Sucking Art. Can you still not understand?” Li Dainian’s voice rose.

Listening to him, I felt there was some truth in it. But I no longer wanted to concern myself with this matter. Once my body recovered a little, I would continue searching for Wang Ying. Whether it was her body or her soul, I would find her and bring her back. If her soul had scattered, I would gather it together again; if her body had rotted, I would bury her in my family’s ancestral grave.

Li Dainian froze for a moment. “Da Chuan, rest and recover properly for now. I’ll leave first. Time is running out—at most, we have only half a month. If you truly will not act, then we can only find a way to burn the girl’s body and seal away that ghost heart.”

I stared blankly and shook my head. “Do whatever you want.”

Li Dainian left with a sigh and a shake of his head. Wei Qi stayed with me until late at night. Since Yingzi still had not fully recovered, he went home as well, and the room was left with only me and the three little ghosts.

Shangguan Waner also sent Xuan Li and Qing Ting into the soul urn, saying she wanted to let me have some peace.

A little later, Shangguan Waner made a few dishes and brought them to me. “Brother, get up and eat something. Only if you take care of your body can you search for Sister-in-law everywhere.”

Waner was right. Lying here like this was no solution. I had to be strong. I struggled to rise, but not a trace of strength remained in me. Shangguan Waner held my head and helped me sit up.

She spooned the porridge into my mouth, one mouthful at a time. Though it was only thin porridge, it was still hard to swallow. My throat hurt so badly that even swallowing saliva was painful.

After forcing myself to finish one bowl, I felt much better. With a bitter smile, I said to Shangguan Waner, “Sister, you’ve suffered for me. Go rest.”

Waner’s eyes glistened with tears as she drew close and sat beside me. “Brother, you have to be strong. You can’t just fall like this. If you fall, what am I to do? Ever since Zi Yi left, I have had no one to rely on. Now you are my only support.”

Her tears dripped onto my arm, cool and cold.

“Sister, sleep. It’s all right. I’ll be better soon. I still have to get well enough to find your sister-in-law.” Struggling, I wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes and said it.

Waner let a faint smile appear on her face. “Mm. When you’re better, I’ll go with you to find Sister-in-law. Even if it means to the ends of the earth, I still want to search for Zi Yi as well.”

“Mm, mm.”

The lamp went out, and the room immediately fell into darkness. I felt as though my whole body were floating. These two days had been both endless and brief, like some ordeal in hell.

The night was very still. I lay quietly in bed, and the lingering scent of Wang Ying still seemed to remain by my side. Yet she herself was gone, leaving me nothing at all, not even a single hair. And not even a single hair remained.

I lay there with Wang Ying filling my mind. Every moment we had spent together played before my eyes like a film, and her face appeared with startling clarity.

“Husband, are you looking for me?”

Just as I lay there thinking of her in silence, Wang Ying’s figure suddenly appeared before me. She was smiling sweetly, her pair of delicate eyes looking at me shyly.

“Wife, is it you? It really is you—your soul, or your body?” Seeing Wang Ying appear before me, I hurriedly sat up.

“What difference is there between soul and body? As long as you are doing well, that is enough. I am only going away on a long trip. I’ll be back very soon. You must take good care of your own body. During the days when I am not by your side, you must learn to take care of yourself.”

Wang Ying’s figure drifted through the air, sometimes near, sometimes far. I could barely even touch her.

“Wife, where are you going? I’ll go with you! Wherever you want to go, I’ll go with you, as long as you stay by my side.”

Seeing Wang Ying drift farther away, I hurriedly got to my feet and chased after her.

“Hubby, don’t ask so much. In time, you will understand. In any case, I love you.”

With that, Wang Ying turned and walked away.

At long last I had seen her; how could I let her leave like this? I sprang from the bed and chased after her, lunging forward and clutching her in my arms.

So real. So real. Her body was soft, full, and exquisite—absolutely the real Wang Ying.

“Wife, you cannot go anywhere. You have to stay home with me,” I said passionately, holding her tightly.

“Brother, brother, please don’t do this, all right?”

Just as I was holding Wang Ying in complete abandon, Shangguan Waner’s voice sounded out. I stumbled, suddenly fully awake. Dawn had already begun to gray the sky. I was sprawled over the sofa, and what I had been holding so tightly beneath me was none other than Shangguan Waner.