Kaleidoscope of Death

Chapter 81: Ceremonial Sacrifice

Yin houses in tradition were grave sites. Though they were the complete opposite of Yang houses, they still had to consider feng shui.

As Gu Longming and Lin Qiushi chatted, they searched around the courtyard. This courtyard was large; beside their sleeping quarters, there were also other landscapes and buildings.

Yet between where they lived and where other people lived was planted a thicket of pagoda trees. Though Lin Qiushi didn't know much about feng shui, he knew the saying that pagoda trees attracted ghosts.

Lin Qiushi noticed that on the pagoda trees were bundles of bells bound up by red strings. When the wind blew they rang and rattled. For the moment they sounded cheery to the ear, but if they were heard at night, the bell chimes would surely send chills down the spine.

Further beyond the pagoda trees was a stream that crossed the courtyard. This stream was likely a water source for the town, but had been cut right in half by a brick wall and contained within the yard.

Gu Longming saw this and sighed, "a beached dragon, walled in on all four sides—it's malevolent waters.[1] It shouldn't have been stopped like this." He continued, "I looked around this place, and honestly people who haven't had bad things happen are the impressive ones."

Lin Qiushi reminded him, "we're the ones living here right now."

Gu Longming, "...well we're pretty impressive then."

As they spoke, they heard cymbals and drums outside. They went to the door to look, and found a bunch of people on the street hauling a live pig off into the distance.

They all wore ceremonial red for a sacrifice. The atmosphere seemed celebratory—but a closer inspection of their faces revealed heavy expressions, and even the glimmer of fear in their eyes.

"Where are they going?" Gu Longming asked quietly.

Lin Qiushi shook his head. "I don't know. We'll follow and see?"

"Let's." Gu Longming worried at his hands.

Other people from their group heard the noises too, but some were scared and wouldn't leave the courtyard. Some, though, chose to follow like Lin Qiushi and Gu Longming to see where the crowd was going.

So six or seven people snuck after the sacrificial procession into the distance.

They crossed some streets and passed a small forest, until they saw the procession finally stop at a river outside of town.

This river seemed to be the main stem of that stream in the estate they were staying at. The clay-colored water was teeming—even faraway they could hear the noise of surging water.

The people conducting the sacrifice approached the river and deposited the live pig. Lin Qiushi thought they would throw it raw right into the river, but unexpectedly, one of them pulled out pellet drum and started to repeatedly chant something. This crowd was faraway, and the sound was half-lost to the rushing waters; most couldn't hear what they were chanting. But Lin Qiushi could hear clearly—he heard them chanting that exact rhyme from the hint: I've said it once I'll say it twice, my baby cries with all his might, if you see this chant this thrice, and he'll sleep on 'til morning light.

Only after they finished chanting this a few more times did the crowd throw the pig into the river.

The pig struggled in the water a few times and then quickly sank. When they saw this, the crowd breathed a sigh of relief. They put the pellet drum away and started to leave.

But a few steps in, they heard something heavy hit the ground. They turned around, and saw that the pig had been tossed by something back up through the water surface.