Carefree Path of Dreams

"This place gives me the creeps. Let’s get out of here. We’ll come back with Fang Yuan tomorrow!"

Shaking, Tantai Guihu pulled Chen Xin along with him and ran hard towards the exit.

They were currently in the great hall of the crypt. They had fallen into its heart when the ground gave way, but by virtue of the exposed ceiling, the way out was laid bare ahead for them.

"Ah! Brother Tantai, look!"

The two of them had reached the mouth of the tunnel. Chen Xin pointed to the stone tablet in front of them, her face as white as a sheet.

"My god!"

Tantai Guihu broke out in cold sweat as he read the inscriptions on it.

The words on the stone tablet were simple. They explained that the place sealed up a ’name’ that should not have existed in the world. The name belonged to an ancestor of the Tantai family. He had committed a heinous crime and as a result, he name was cursed.

Everyone who saw or even heard of the name would die!

If they had entered the crypt from the entrance, they would have seen the warning sign first and would have proceeded with caution.

Unfortunately, Tantai Guihu and Chenxin had not, and hence did not see the warning.

"What do we do now? I don’t want to die!"

Tears streamed down Chen Xin’s face as she tried to forget about the inscriptions on the memorial tablet. But the more she interfered with the memory, the deeper it was imprinted upon her consciousness.

"I finally understand...why the people of Five Ghosts Village are like that..."

Tantai Guihu had come to a realisation.

"They had intended to move the buried treasure away but saw the memorial tablet along the way, thus unleashing the curse on themselves...they have probably died more than once since then."

Chen Xin understood too and trembled as she thought about it.

A landslide had occurred in the mountains one fine day, revealing the entrance of the ancient tomb.

The villagers of the Five Ghosts Village were overcome with greed and took part in the gold rush despite the written warnings, hence activating the unspeaking curse.

Additionally, due to the distortion of time, death was not the end for them. They were cursed to die and die again every single day in an infinite time loop!

Now, it was clear that the four of them had stumbled upon this neverending cyclical curse!

....

In the meantime, in Ghost Sealing Village.

"The unspeakable taboo is a name?"

Fang Yuan looked at Madam Donghua, who had regained her memory, ponderously.

Strange level curses had peculiar triggers. Sometimes it could be simply a name or even an image!

"But if it was only the name, aren’t there plenty of people with the same name? Wouldn’t it have caused a mess worldwide? Hence, there must be other triggering factors as well, like perhaps...within a set location?

This would probably explain why the Tantai family chose to migrate. They must have learnt a painful lesson.

He looked at the mother and son pair in front of him with some pity.

This curse. Death. Just how many times had they gone through it? They would never get used to it because their memories would reset every day, and they would relieve fear and desolation every single day.

"Tell me!"

Fang Yuan was direct.

"Tell me about the name, about your fears, everything!"

He did not know if he could handle a Strange level spacetime curse and was planning to try and in the process, find the source of the curse.

"How can I do that? This is something harmful..."

Madam Donghua was pale-faced. She had been frightened by her experience in the afternoon.

"If you don’t tell us right now, your son might not be rescued in time!"

Fang Yuan sneered.

"It’s your choice to make!"

The only thing stopping Madam Donghua from telling them was her conscience, but when measured up against Goudan, the scales tipped in the favour of her beloved son.

"Fine...I’ll tell you, that name!"

Madam Donghua gritted her teeth.

"Monk, are you listening?"

Fang Yuan turned to Jiese with an amused smile.

"Amituofo, as the saying goes, ’If not me, then who?’"

Jiese’s face was solemn.

"Also...it is a fact that the curse already affects us, and there’s no escaping it."

"Not bad. You’re speaking like a true disciple of the Lord Buddha."

Fang Yuan nodded and turned back to Madam Donghua.

"In that ancient tomb, there is a temple. The memorial tablet on the top row has the cursed name inscribed on it. It was originally chained up and covered up by a curtain, but the village chief thought that the tablet might lead to more treasures and ordered them removed..."

Madam Donghua could remember the events of that fateful day clearly.

"That name...I remember it, it is...Tantai...Moye!"

’It is indeed from the Tantai family...’

Fang Yuan and Jiese looked at each other. They were not surprised.

"Tantai Moye?"

Fang Yuan chewed on the name. His sensory perceptions suddenly established a link with the true origin of the curse.

’The memorial tablet was but a catalyst, not the origin...the true origin of the curse is hidden in the space-time gaps.’

He now understood why he had not managed to find the origin during his previous investigations.

It was because the curse did not lie on the plane of existence, but along the spacetime axes!

Once more, a deathly silence had fallen over the world outside.

"It seems like everyone has had their memories reset again. The curse is taking place right now..."

Fang Yuan sighed and put on his black robes. His eyes gave off a golden gleam and his hands had turned purplish-black. He was ready to fight.

After all, he was dealing with a curse that could distort space-time, the most potent among Strange level curses.

’Also...what does this curse have to do with the Tantai family?’

After a deep thought, Fang Yuan stepped forward and set black chains around Madam Donghua and Goudan.

With their souls being kept in check, their expression shifted from one of consternation to one of passivity.

’No wonder I thought they were weird from the start! They had died and revived so many times that they are now neither human nor ghost!"

That was another question answered, but it did not make Fang Yuan feel any better.

His sixth sense and the various occurrences that took place after they had learnt the name told him that the arrival of a terrifying entity...was impending!

"Amituofo, don’t worry Madam Donghua, Goudan will be...fine!"

Jiese was attempting to comfort them when a sudden change came over his face.

Madam Donghua had stabbed her hand into Jiese’s chest.

"Oh Lord Buddha, Dragon of the heavens, explode!"

Jiese’s eyes flew wide open and golden rays shot out. A protective band of light formed around his body.

Ping! Ping!

The two sets of chains were pulled taut, at the end of which were two malevolent ghosts!

"Hmm?"

Fang Yuan looked over and was surprised to see Madam Donghua’s and Goudan’s transformation. Their hands were a greenish-purple with very long fingernails. Their appearances were that of ghosts.

"Humans one minute, ghosts the next? There was no sign at all...no, no. They had already died when the curse had hit them for the first time."

Fang Yuan came to a conclusion quickly before turning to Jiese.

"Monk...are you alright?"

"I won’t die!"

Jiese took out his medicine pouch and applied the ointment on his wound. The attack had apparently taken its toll on him for his breathing was weak.

If Fang Yuan had not restrained them from the start, the two ghosts would have dug Jiese’s heart out.

Wooooowooooo!

At this moment, there was a commotion outside the house.

When Fang Yuan went to check it out, he realised that there were dozens of ghosts wandering outside.

They were all villagers by day but had transformed en masse into ghosts when night fell. With the village chief leading them on, they began to close in on the yard.

"Ghost Sealing Village...this village is living up to its name!"

Fang Yuan chuckled coldly.

"Did you think I will worry about a ghost swarm of this level?"

Shing! Shing!

Rows and rows of chains extended from Fang Yuan’s body until they formed a giant defensive web.

His eyes had simultaneously turned into black holes and rays of blinding light shot out from them.

"Ghost...reaper!"

A large black shadow carrying a sickle appeared behind him and swung it with brutal force!

Expressions of fear appeared on the faces of the ghosts, which made them look human for a moment.

The ghosts who had been hit disintegrated as though their bodies were made out of sand..... all that was left of them were skeletons.

The spirit-like wisps that were left behind disappeared completely into the black holes.

"Amituofo!"

Jiese clasped his hands together and was preparing to recite the reincarnation mantras when a change came over the surroundings.

A thick fog had formed around them and the disintegrated ghosts were materialising again. It was as if...time had been turned back!

....

"Quick!"

Tantai Guihu grabbed Chen Xin’s hand and sped in the direction of Ghost Sealing Village.

"This curse will definitely not allow anyone to escape... It even made us lose our way so as to force us into seeing the name!"

Tantai Guihu analysed their situation.

"If we run towards the outside world, we will encounter dead ends no matter which path we take. Only by going back to Ghost Sealing Village will we have a chance to survive!"

Indeed, as they sprinted along, they could see the silent Ghost Sealing Village edging closer to them under the moonlight.

"As long as we find Fang Yuan, we will live!"

Tantai Guihu shouted out loud. Suddenly, a crack appeared on his mask.

"What?"

He was shocked and came to a stop.

"My...mask. Even my mask is gradually succumbing to the curse?"

It was thanks to his mask that he and Chen Xin were able to make it this far without getting harmed.

But now, their greatest protection was losing its power.

"Don’t worry Chen Xin, I won’t let you die!"

Tantai Guihu cut open his palm again. Even though he did not know just how effective his blood could be at this point in time, it was better than nothing.

"Thank you Brother Tantai...I’ve always..."

Having gone through so much together, Chen Xin was in tears again and was on the verge of saying something.

Suddenly, the world went dark.

She was horrified to realise that she had returned to the crypt, and Tantai Guihu was nowhere to be seen.

The darkness was suffocating and she experienced a heavy feeling of despair.

"No!!!"