Chapter 1

Chapter 1

The day I met Chuxue.

It was in a dimly lit square.

The setup there was strange. It looked very much like… an altar.

A tattered black curtain had been spread across the center, embroidered all over with bizarre symbols and patterns. Under the murky yellow light, they seemed to writhe faintly, as if alive.

At the center of the curtain lay a little girl with her eyes tightly shut.

A group of burly men, bare-chested and wild-haired, were circling her in a frenzy.

I had come to visit my Great-Aunt, never expecting to witness such an absurd scene. I rushed over at once and scooped the girl up, only to find her burning hot. “She has a fever!”

“Why aren’t you taking her to the hospital? What are you doing here?”

Not far away, a young woman seemed wary of something. She lowered her voice and said, “Put her down, quick! Chuxue is Crossing the Yin. Aunt Chen is saving her!”

Looking at the eerie scene before me, an inexplicable unease welled up in my chest.

“You said she’s Crossing the Yin?”

“Yes. Half her body has already stepped into the Yin Realm!”

The woman hurried on, “Aunt Chen specially invited some Daoist priests here to call back the half of her soul she lost!”

I was just about to curse at her. This was complete nonsense.

But then a hoarse voice sounded behind me.

“Chuxue is one of the Yin beings from birth.”

“According to legend, those who can Cross the Yin are born without crying.”

“By common sense, a child who doesn’t cry shouldn’t survive… But not only do they survive, they are far more intelligent than ordinary people.”

“Because from the moment they become aware of the world, they know the day they will die.”

I turned back and saw an old woman with graying hair.

At first glance, she looked like a plain village woman, dressed in a faded blue cloth shirt washed nearly white. Yet her eyes carried a shrewdness and mystery unlike any ordinary village woman.

At the sight of her, the young woman greeted her respectfully. “Hello, Aunt Chen.”

Only after hearing her introduction did I learn that this old woman was actually a spirit medium famous throughout all the villages for miles around.

The moment Aunt Chen spoke, the dozen or so tall, strapping men in the middle immediately turned around. Their gazes all landed on me at once, each one so strange it sent a chill down my spine.

Seeing me retreat in fright, Aunt Chen softly reassured me, “Don’t be afraid. They’re my disciples.”

I barely managed to steady myself and asked calmly, “Why… are they looking at me like that?”

“Because their eyes can see ghosts.”

Aunt Chen paused, then added, “Especially the ones attached to women.”

At those words, a chill ran through me from head to toe.