Chapter 5: Little Feng's Experience

Wang Changsheng looked at Wang Qiusheng and instructed, "Qiusheng, prepare a basin of black dog blood; I have a great need for it."

"Yes, Uncle Nine," Wang Qiusheng replied and turned to leave.

"Uncle Nine," Wang Qingyun asked cautiously, "it's still early. If you don't mind, perhaps you could rest for a while at my home?"

"Very well, lead the way," Wang Changsheng said. Wang Qingyun was delighted and immediately led Wang Changsheng towards his home.

***

In an overgrown courtyard, there was a well on the left side, covered by a large stone. Not far from the well stood a locust tree, about four or five zhang tall. The tree was lush with branches and leaves, providing a cool shade underneath. Two young boys were playing in the courtyard, chasing each other. After a while, perhaps tired from their games, they walked over to cool off under the locust tree.

"What's that smell? It's so awful!" a five or six-year-old boy exclaimed, sniffing a few times with a look of disgust.

"Brother Dahu," another boy said dismissively, "Erniu lives next door, and he raises a dozen big fat pigs. It's probably just pig manure."

"No, pig manure doesn't smell like this," the first boy insisted, "The stench seems to be coming from the well." He took a step towards the well.

Just then, a woman's voice abruptly called out, "Dahu, Dahu, where are you?"

"Oh no, my mom's looking for me!" the boy exclaimed. "Erlengzi, let's play another day; I have to go." He quickly left.

The other boy also left shortly after.

Through a slight gap, a rotting female corpse could be seen floating in the well water, covered in maggots—a truly repulsive sight.

In a room directly facing the locust tree, the door was tightly shut, allowing only faint sunlight to filter through the dilapidated window. The room was sparsely furnished: a red wooden bed next to a wooden cabinet. The cabinet door was slightly ajar, revealing a faint green shadow huddled inside. This green shadow was Xiaofeng, who had become a ghost.

From the time she could remember, Xiaofeng had never seen her father. Her mother had told her that he abandoned them to live a carefree life with another woman. Her mother, frail and constantly ill from overwork, operated a small tofu stall, barely making enough to support them both.

With no men in the household, Xiaofeng and her mother became vulnerable targets for local thugs and ruffians. When Xiaofeng was ten, a drunken old bachelor broke into their home late one night, attempting to assault her mother. Xiaofeng's mother fought back fiercely, and Xiaofeng's loud screams alerted the neighbors, scaring the old bachelor away. However, in the struggle, her mother's eyes were blinded.

Afterward, the old bachelor compensated Xiaofeng's family with three hundred wen. From that day on, ten-year-old Xiaofeng shouldered the heavy burden of the household. Under her blind mother's guidance, she learned to make tofu and earned their living by selling it.

By the time she was fifteen or sixteen, Xiaofeng was of marriageable age, and matchmakers frequently visited her home. Xiaofeng, however, insisted on two conditions: she must bring her mother with her into the marriage, and the betrothal gift must be ten taels of silver. No suitor was willing to accept these terms.

When she was eighteen, Xiaofeng met a young master named Zhao, who was en route to the capital for the imperial examination. Young Master Zhao fell instantly in love with Xiaofeng. He vowed to meet her two conditions, even claiming he would skip the imperial examination to marry her first. He stayed in town for three days, bringing her small gifts with every visit and showing her such profound care that he completely won her heart.

One dark and windy night, Young Master Zhao and Xiaofeng met secretly in an alley. Unable to control himself, he began to fondle her, but they were seen by Xiaofeng's neighbor, Li Er Mazi. The two then moved their rendezvous to the abandoned Yang residence. There, amidst Young Master Zhao's sweet words, they consummated their relationship, with the sky as their blanket and the earth as their bed, making their intimacy undeniable.

No sooner had Young Master Zhao taken Xiaofeng's virginity than he announced he had to leave for the imperial examination in the capital, promising to return for her only after gaining success. Xiaofeng, naturally, refused. They argued, and in a fit of rage, Xiaofeng threatened to report him to the authorities for violating her purity. Despite Young Master Zhao's repeated attempts to persuade her, Xiaofeng remained adamant, demanding he marry her immediately. She wasn't naive; if he truly achieved success, there was no guarantee he would ever return for her.

Cornered by Xiaofeng, Young Master Zhao's true, ferocious nature emerged. With the same hands he used for reading and writing, he strangled Xiaofeng to death. He then dumped her body into the well and covered the opening with a large stone. Since a neighbor kept more than a dozen large fat pigs next door, the putrid smell from the corpse went unnoticed by others.

Xiaofeng died unjustly. She never could have imagined that the lover who had just uttered sweet words to her would, in an instant, strangle her to death. Her resentment was immense. The Yang residence had been abandoned and uninhabited for a long time. In the courtyard, there was a locust tree, and the room directly facing it contained furniture made from locust wood, resulting in a very strong yin energy. Xiaofeng's three ethereal souls and seven corporeal souls were nourished by this yin energy, slowly transforming her into a ghost.

The night Xiaofeng realized she had become a ghost, she immediately hurried home to check on her blind, aging mother. To her heartbreak, her mother, already frail and sickly, had starved to death without her care.

At this point, Xiaofeng had no intention of harming anyone and merely wandered aimlessly through the streets. Unfortunately, she encountered several of the thugs who had previously tormented her and her mother. These ruffians, having drunk too much, spoke carelessly, using her mother's death as a topic of gossip and embellishing the details. This infuriated Xiaofeng, causing her deep-seated resentment to surge.

Back in the locust wood room, Xiaofeng grew increasingly enraged with every thought. Her father had abandoned them, the old bachelor had blinded her mother, and Young Master Zhao had seduced and then murdered her, leading to her mother's starvation. Even after death, her mother was subjected to men's mockery. It was all because of these despicable men that she was strangled and dumped into a well, and her mother starved to death. She utterly despised them.

In a fit of rage, that very night, Xiaofeng went to the home of one of the thugs and drained him of his vital energy.

Initially, Xiaofeng only sought to vent her anger, but after draining the thug's vital energy, she discovered she had become noticeably more powerful.

Having tasted this new power, Xiaofeng didn't hesitate. She began frequently draining the vital energy of young, strong men to increase her strength. She had been tormented in life, and now, in death, she intended to collect her due.

Everyone who had ever bullied her and her mother deserved to die.

Li Er Mazi owned a black dog that would bark furiously whenever Xiaofeng approached his home, waking him up. At first, Xiaofeng was powerless against the dog because she was too weak. However, after draining the vital energy from several adult men, she found she could manipulate objects like stones and wood.

When she returned to Li Er Mazi's home, the black dog barked furiously and tried to pounce and bite her. The dog's incessant barking woke Li Er Mazi, who, annoyed, tied the black dog in the woodshed, unwittingly making it easier for Xiaofeng to carry out her plans.

Once Li Er Mazi was asleep again, Xiaofeng telekinetically lifted a stone and crushed the black dog to death. By then, however, dawn was approaching, so Xiaofeng had to return to the Yang residence to await the arrival of night.

As time slowly passed, darkness gradually descended.