Yu Nian fixed her gaze on Cuicui and suddenly asked, "May I enter your spiritual sea to check your soul?"
Cuicui was taken aback. Although she wasn't well - versed in metaphysics, she knew how crucial the spiritual sea was to a person.
But she whole - heartedly trusted and respected Yu Nian, so she nodded without hesitation.
Yu Nian gently took Cuicui's hand.
Cuicui held her breath. She felt a gentle force slowly penetrate into her spiritual sea.
Yu Nian's soul glowed with a golden light, like sunlight soothing the grief and grievances in Cuicui's heart.
For some reason, Cuicui felt like crying.
Not wanting to lose her composure in front of everyone, she quickly took a deep breath and held back her tears.
Yu Nian explored Cuicui's spiritual sea. She was surprised by how vast it was. In the center of the spiritual sea stood a tall twin - trunked tree, with a bright red halo swirling around it continuously.
That was Cuicui's good fortune.
However, for a 20 - year - old, this seemed like an excessive amount.
Yu Nian withdrew her soul and said calmly, "It seems that your soul has been deliberately mended."
Cuicui looked blank. "What do you mean?"
Yu Nian took Cuicui's hand. She saw that the life - line on her palm was extremely long, stretching all the way to the end of the palm.
"Do you know about borrowing fortune? Someone has given you their lifespan and good fortune."
Cuicui was stunned for a long time. "Who is that person, and why did they do this?"
Yu Nian didn't answer. She looked thoughtfully at Shi Tou, who was standing there looking blank.
...
The setting sun shone on the Faceless Village, and wisps of cooking smoke rose.
The people from the Pure Heart Temple were walking on the only path into the village when they met a funeral procession head - on.
The sound of the suona echoed throughout the village. Everyone in the procession wore white gowns and black mourning belts around their waists.
Everyone's expression was strange. It was more like numbness from being used to such things rather than sadness.
The white funeral pennants fluttered in the wind, and yellow and white paper money flew everywhere.
Cuicui's gaze fell on the black - and - white portrait in front of the coffin. She was slightly taken aback. "The village head..."
Seeing that she was not in a good state, Yu Nian gently tugged at her sleeve.
The leader of the funeral procession was a strangely dressed man. He wore a gray checkered long robe different from the others and a strange mask on his face, looking like a strange priest emerging from ancient mythology.
When the two groups met on a narrow path, the villagers suddenly stopped and stared at the people from the Pure Heart Temple with strange and disgusted looks.
A middle - aged man suddenly stepped out of the crowd and said menacingly, "Who are you? Our Faceless Village doesn't welcome outsiders!"
Yu Nian remained calm, with a gentle smile on her face. "We are college students from a neighboring city. We're very interested in the drought - demon bride culture, so we came to the Faceless Village for research."
The man waved his hand impatiently. "Whether you're here for research or mourning, you outsiders only bring us disasters. Get out of here as far as you can."
He Zhiping was extremely angry at their attitude and murmured softly, "I think they're just guilty and don't dare to let us in..."
"You!" The man's face contorted in anger. He reached out to drive them away, but was stopped by a pale hand.
The masked man slowly spoke. His voice was unexpectedly deep, making it hard to tell his age. "All visitors are guests. Let them in."
The man was taken aback. "Great Wizard, have you forgotten how much trouble that outsider brought us two years ago..."
The Great Wizard suddenly turned his head. His cold gaze landed on the man.
The man immediately fell silent. He suddenly changed his attitude and said to Yu Nian and the others, "Follow me."
As Yu Nian passed by the Great Wizard, she smelled a faint, putrid odor. It was so faint that it disappeared in the air in an instant.
Yu Nian stopped and looked at the coffin carried by the villagers.
She saw that the coffin lid was pasted with dense talisman papers. On closer inspection, they were all exorcism talismans.
"Who is in the coffin?"
The man said in a low voice, "It's the head of our Faceless Village. Since you're so interested in the drought - demon bride culture, you must know about the bride of the drought demon. It was because the bride of the drought demon escaped some time ago that the entire Faceless Village was punished by the Faceless God. The village head was the first one to be punished. He went up the mountain to cut firewood but accidentally fell and died on the spot." The man paused. Remembering some terrifying scene, his lips turned pale. "It was really strange. When we found the village head, his neck was bitten off by some ferocious beast with sharp teeth. His death was so miserable! His head was almost separated from his body, only connected by a layer of skin. This must be the wrath of the Faceless God..."
Seemingly realizing he had said something he shouldn't have, the man shut up awkwardly and didn't say another word.
Cuicui walked beside Yu Nian. Her face was as white as a sheet, and her voice was choked with sobs. "Sister Yu Nian, did I really do something wrong? Did my escape bring disaster to the Faceless Village..."
Yu Nian comfortingly took her hand. "This matter is very strange. Calm down first."
The man led everyone to an old mansion and said, "Please stay here for one night. Our Faceless Village has always been warm - hearted and hospitable. We'll hold a grand feast for you tomorrow to welcome you."
He Zhiping recalled the looks of the villagers who seemed to want to devour them alive just now, and the corner of his mouth twitched.
After the door was closed, Yu Nian asked Cuicui, "Do you still remember the village head?"
Cuicui wiped away her tears. "Of course. The village head was one of the few good people in this village. During the days when I was locked in the village, he secretly brought me food several times. On the day I escaped, it was also him who risked his life to open the side gate for me. Otherwise, I would have died in the village long ago! But before I could repay him, he..."
The more Cuicui talked, the sadder she became, and tears streamed down her face.
Feng Chengyuan was a bit confused. "Since he was the village head, why didn't he just order to abolish the human sacrifice?"
Cuicui choked with sobs. "You don't know. The person with real power in the Faceless Village is actually not the village head, but the Great Wizard. The old village head Tan and the Great Wizard didn't get along well. Besides, he was a bit old, and many villagers didn't want to listen to him. The village head wanted to abolish the human - sacrifice ceremony many times, but was always rejected by the Great Wizard. The situation once got very tense."
Feng Chengyuan asked again, "Have you ever seen the true face of the Great Wizard? Why does he always wear a mask?"
"The Great Wizards of all generations in the Faceless Village have worn masks. Whoever sees the face of the Great Wizard is considered to have offended the gods. For example, the previous Great Wizard died in the Faceless Village, and no one ever saw his true face."
Yu Nian nodded thoughtfully and said, "I saw that the coffin of the old village head Tan was filled with resentment just now. There will surely be a corpse transformation tonight. We have to dig out the village head's body before something unexpected happens."
He Zhiping staggered. "You mean we have to dig up a grave and unearth a corpse???"
Cuicui had always respected the old village head Tan very much. Hearing this, she was a bit hesitant. "Isn't this disrespectful to the old village head Tan?"
Yu Nian raised her eyes and looked at everyone. She said calmly, "If the village head was really wrongly killed, his obsession will trap his soul in the Faceless Village forever, preventing him from reincarnation. Seeking justice and restoring the truth is the greatest respect for the deceased."