Chapter 1 The Bridge Must Be Built

Sun Yuangang, wearing a checkered shirt, couldn't help but say, "This bridge absolutely cannot be built! Think about it, if we build the bridge and let these murderous demons cross the river, how many innocent people will die tragically?"

"But... but if we don't build the bridge, what... what are we going to do? Those crazy women won't let us go." Weng Chenglin, dressed in a wide, old-fashioned suit, looked toward the door with a worried expression.

"Heh, you think if we build the bridge, those guys will let us go?" Luan Lihui's voice grew louder, filled with grief and indignation. "Didn't you hear that old woman? She said the Zhusheng Niangniang (Childbirth Goddess) doesn't like us and will sacrifice us all alive tomorrow morning, cutting off our hands and feet and throwing our bodies into the Blackwater River."

"Yeah, those damned demons won't let us go. If the bridge isn't built, let's fight them!"

"Right, let's fight them!"

"In a moment, we'll try to collect weapons, then sneak out and kill anyone we see. Kill one to break even, kill two to make a profit, and avenge those brothers who died unjustly!"

The crowd was filled with indignation. The power that erupts from people in despair is astonishing. Since they knew there was no way out, they might as well go all out.

"Wait, everyone, listen to me for a few words."

Seeing Li Bai stand up, the chaotic scene immediately quieted down. As the only woman among these people, Li Bai did not mingle with those crazy women but instead maintained and protected them everywhere. Everyone saw this.

"Everyone, the bridge must be built. This is tonight's task, and if we don't build the bridge, none of us can leave Blackwater Village."

"But as for how the bridge is built and what it looks like, that's our business. I think we can make something of this."

Lu Zhangyuan, the fair-skinned man who had once blocked a knife for Yao Shunyu, was thoughtful. "Sister Li, you said before that those crazy women might be afraid of water."

"That's right, so Li Bai and I just came up with a plan. If we can make the bridge collapse when the villagers cross the river, causing those villagers to fall into the water, perhaps we can have a chance of survival."

Yao Shunyu also stood up at this moment and explained the plan he and Li Bai had. This plan was of great importance, and it was definitely impossible to rely on just the two of them. They needed everyone's help.

Before proposing this plan, Li Bai and Yao Shunyu had also argued. After all, there was still a Shen Hong (Deep Red) hidden among them, but in an emergency, they could only take things one step at a time, increase their vigilance during the task, and adapt to the situation.

Compared with the lurking Shen Hong, the immediate task and those strange villagers were the most direct threats.

Of course, there was also that Zhusheng Niangniang (Childbirth Goddess). Until now, they still hadn't figured out what that ghost thing was.

It didn't take much effort to convince these people. Learning that there was still a chance of survival, everyone expressed their willingness to cooperate and listen to Li Bai's arrangements.

Weng Chenglin, wearing a wide suit, tightened his clothes, his throat unconsciously rolling as if he had thought of something terrible. "I say, does anyone know what a Jisi Yao (Living Burial Cave) is? It sounds scary."

"I know about this." A muffled voice rang out. It was a dark-skinned, short, and sturdy man. The man didn't talk often, and he looked fierce. Yao Shunyu had noticed this person a long time ago, knowing that his name was Wu Qiang.

"I used to be a bangbang (porter) back home, you know... a porter. I heard a bangbang who often worked with me mention that there was a mountain near his home, and behind the mountain were many of these things, but that was all before Liberation."

"In that era when people weren't treated like people, if the old people in the family lived for a long time, especially if the children and grandchildren were in poor health but the old people were particularly energetic, then the neighbors would say that the old people were living off the lifespan of their descendants. This is called... called huo zisun shou (living off the lifespan of descendants)."

"It's also very simple to break this. You just need to find a remote place on a nearby mountain, whether it's a cliff or a bush, and dig a cave large enough for one person. Then find a good day, beat gongs and drums, and carry the dressed-up old person up the mountain and put them in the cave."

"From then on, arrange for someone to go up the mountain to deliver food every day, one meal a day. The person delivering the food brings a brick with them, and every time they deliver a meal, they build one outside the old person's cave. As the days go by, the old person is sealed in the cave, the food can't be delivered, so there's no need to deliver it, and the person delivering the food doesn't go anymore."

"By the way, there's also a saying that if the person delivering the food sprains their foot on the road or gets injured, then they have a reason to lie at home and wait for the injury to heal. It could be a few days, or it could be ten days or half a month, then the food doesn't need to be delivered."

An old man, alone and helpless, enduring hunger and cold, definitely couldn't last that long. Huang Jun, wearing glasses, raised his head in doubt: "Then these old people will stay in the cave obediently? Won't they try to go home?"

After a moment of silence, Wu Qiang shook his head slightly and sighed: "No, it is said that very few old people can eat for a full ten days. Many old people have stopped eating or drinking since they were carried up the mountain and die within a few days."

"It's because since they were carried up the mountain, the old people's hearts have died, right." Li Bai felt a pang of discomfort in her heart when she thought of that scene.

Wu Qiang paused for a moment before slowly saying, "Actually, it's not entirely what you think. Many old people go voluntarily, and even force their children to carry them up the mountain. They think they are useless, lose their ability to work and can't farm, and more people means more mouths to feed. In that era of scarce food, they wanted to leave the food for their children."

"It is also for these reasons that this Jisi Yao (Living Burial Cave) has several other names, called Zisi Yao (Self-Death Cave) and Laoren Dong (Old People's Cave)."

Li Bai and Yao Shunyu looked at Wu Qiang with a hint of vigilance in their eyes. After all, it was one thing for him to know, but he knew it in such detail. It didn't sound like hearsay.

Yao Shunyu glanced at Li Bai, then looked at Wu Qiang and asked, "Brother Wu, are there any rules or taboos about going to the Jisi Yao (Living Burial Cave)?"

"Taboos..." Wu Qiang thought for a moment and then shook his head, his simple and honest face with sincerity. "I really don't know about this. He didn't say it at the time."

However, even if Wu Qiang didn't say it, Li Bai had to say it. After all, everyone was going to the Jisi Yao (Living Burial Cave) tonight, and if there were heavy casualties, tonight's plan would be difficult.

And if Wu Qiang was really a Shen Hong (Deep Red), even if she didn't say these taboos, he probably knew them.

"Coincidentally, I've also heard some stories about the Jisi Yao (Living Burial Cave). It is said that if you can't see the faces of the people inside after approaching the Jisi Yao (Living Burial Cave), then absolutely do not answer them. This is a big taboo." Li Bai looked solemn.

"Why?" Lu Zhangyuan, whose shoulder was still bleeding, asked.

"Because you don't know whether the people inside are dead or not, and whether the one talking to you is a person or a ghost."