Chapter 41: Something about the Lake of a Thousand Ghosts

We met Hui Gen in X County, the place we had agreed to meet, because it was close to our next destination, the Lake of a Thousand Ghosts.

When I saw Hui Gen, he was leaning against a grocery store, holding a bottle of Coke in his hand and chewing on a crispy peanut. He was talking to a woman in the grocery store with a smile on his face.

He looked very happy. After a month apart, his handsome appearance had become even more handsome. He was no longer the rough 18-year-old who would break out in a pimple or two. Now, his face had returned to the egg white color of his childhood. This kid will grow back.

The woman he was facing, no, to be precise, the girl, also looked very happy, laughing like a silver bell from time to time, and the way she looked at Huigen was getting softer and softer.

Next to him and the girl, there was an old man looking at them helplessly. We couldn’t figure out what was going on in this magical scene.

Only when Chengxin stood next to me and saw this scene, his face turned gloomy, his eyes flashed under his glasses, and he said to me in a cold tone, “Chengyi, is Huigen trying to compete with me for charm? He forgot his identity as a monk.”

Then, a cold sweat ran down my forehead and onto my face. Chengxin’s perspective on things is indeed different.

Unable to respond, I could only quickly walk with Brother Chengxin to Huigen’er. As for the others, I let them go to a hotel to rest first because they were tired from the journey.

“Brother!” As we got closer, Hui Gen’er finally saw me and Brother Chengxin. He smiled and ran to me, then put his arm around my shoulder.

Holding my shoulder? I suddenly felt a little uncomfortable. When I was little, I held him, but now he is holding me. How could it be that after a month apart, he is holding me instead of me holding him?

At this moment, I suddenly realized that Hui Gen had inexplicably grown a head taller in a month’s time. Could it be related to that secret method?

However, this is not the time to ask questions. In addition, Chengxin was staring at Huigen with a look of impending violence, so I could only smile and say to Huigen, “Have you been waiting long? Shall we go now?”

Hui Gen said nonchalantly, “It hasn’t been long. The work was finished ahead of schedule, so I got here three days early.”

“Have you been bored for the past three days?” Chengxin said in a strange tone.

“Haha, it’s not boring. I come here every day to wait for you guys and chat with the boss’s daughter. It’s really fun.” Then, Huigen paused and said to me, “Brother, I’m going to say hello to someone and leave.”

After saying that, Huigen ran to the grocery store and said to the people inside, “The person I was waiting for has arrived. I’ve been bothering you for a few days, so I’m leaving. If I come here again in the future, I’ll take care of your business.”

“Are you leaving already? We… you remember the phone number of our store, right? You can contact us in the future.” A girl’s voice came from the grocery store, quite reluctant to part.

“Monks have no fixed abode, and everything is predestined. We will meet again if we are destined to do so.” Hui Gen said very seriously.

“Are you a monk?” The girl’s voice suddenly became full of wonder.

“Amitabha, I have been a monk for sixteen years.” Hui Gen’er sang a Buddhist chant, then casually removed the cap from his head, revealing a bald head.

“You… you’re a monk? How could you…”

“Daughter, I said, where did this kid come from? You chat with people so happily every day, and you even have feelings for them. I said… Hey, daughter, where are you going?”

Two voices came from the grocery store. Chengxin and I were embarrassed, but Huigen looked calm and a little confused. He put on his hat and walked towards Chengxin and me.

I coughed and said to Hui Gen’er, somewhat angrily, “What are you doing, you little brat? Since you’re a monk, why are you bothering girls?”

Hui Gen’er said innocently, “I didn’t provoke her. I’m at peace with myself. My master once said, ‘Be honest and sincere with others. I was sincere when I talked to her, and my occasional concern was genuine. Why did all this communication that people should have become provocation?”

I couldn’t answer right away. Should I tell Huigen that there is too much suspicion and hypocrisy in the world, too much malice and speculation, and that your sincerity and honesty are easily moved by others, especially girls? Should I speak a little bit falsely to others, or should I sing a Buddhist chant and show my bald head to tell others that you are a great monk as soon as you see a girl?

After all, this is a problem left behind in this world!

Not only was I speechless, but so was Chengxin. After that, Chengxin could only say to Huigen with a scowl on his face, “In short, you should talk to girls less in the future. Don’t people in the Buddhist faith know the precepts?”

“I know, Brother Chengxin, I just saw that this place is close to the lake, so I asked about the lake when I was free.” Hui Gen’er said with a face full of grievances.

“So what did you find out?” I asked casually, not wanting to dwell on the issue.

“There are strange things. I heard that every year, or every two years, there are strange murders in this county. I don’t know if it’s a coincidence or if it has something to do with the Lake of a Thousand Ghosts…” Hui Gen’er began to ramble on.

As the sun set, the three of us gradually grew farther and farther apart, and a new journey was about to begin.

The strange death cases in the county town that Hui Gen said did not attract much attention from me and Cheng Xin Ge. After all, some of the circumstances he mentioned were already solved cases.

Besides, in this land of China, there are many cases of murder in every city and every year. It doesn’t make sense to try to link the events in this county to the Lake of a Thousand Ghosts.

We had heard of these exaggerated folk cases, and we just laughed at them.

After dinner, everyone went back to their rooms to rest. We decided to listen to the story of the gray-eyed man the next day, because we were all tired after the long journey.

I just didn’t forget to tell Xiao Chengqian that the reason Hui Gen disappeared for a month was because of the blood tattoo on his body.

In fact, it was a blessing in disguise. That time, Hui Gen was seriously injured and lost a lot of blood, but for some reason, it promoted the integration of the blood tattoo on his body. This incident has not happened many times in the history of Buddhism, so at first it did not attract everyone’s attention.

It wasn’t until a month ago, when we were away for a few days, that Hui Gen suddenly started to feel hot all over, and sometimes he would start to talk incoherently, saying that his power seemed to have increased a lot.

These symptoms were originally very similar to those of a fever, but as the successor of the medical lineage, Chengxin denied this possibility after taking Hui Gen’er’s pulse, but could not find a reason. He could only seek help from Hui Gen’er’s master through certain contact methods.

As a result, after all this fuss, we learned that the blood tattoo on Hui Gen’er’s body had merged with him. No wonder when he was talking nonsense, he said that the essence of the soul had been recognized and that the opportunity had arrived.

Obviously, this kind of thing attracted the attention of Hui Gen’er’s master, and the next day, someone came to pick him up, saying that this kind of situation was almost impossible to encounter in 300 years. If the fusion went smoothly, Hui Gen’er could receive another blood tattoo through secret methods, and at that time, Hui Gen’er would really be the real fighting monk in the mysterious temple that could only appear once every 300 years!

It sounds amazing. This method of ascension in Buddhism really makes me, a Taoist, envious! To be honest, Taoism is not without methods of rapid ascension, but they all lean towards the “evil path” and are prone to unstable foundations. How can they compare to the righteous and honorable method of ascension that Hui Gen’er has?

In fact, the conditions are extremely harsh. Hui Gen just happened to meet the conditions for the blood tattoo inheritance, which even Hui Da didn’t meet!

It was quiet at night, and Hui Gen was the type who fell asleep as soon as he touched the pillow. I don’t know if I was too tired from the journey, but I couldn’t sleep. I could only get up and look out the window and stare blankly.

The night outside was dark, and the moon was not bright, but it was a little fuzzy, which reminded me of the kind of fuzzy moon I saw when I was a child in the graveyard, the first time I saw Li Fengxian possessing my second sister.

Looking at this, I couldn’t help but laugh a little, because the moon here is a little scary because it is close to the Lake of a Thousand Ghosts?

The Lake of a Thousand Ghosts is extremely famous in the circle, but ordinary people don’t necessarily know about it. They often think that this lake is a large lake where some aggrieved spirits gather, but that is actually a mistake.

Ghosts like water. Some people have suggested that if there is a hell, or if it coexists with the world of the living, then we should consider that it is actually in the water. After all, our planet is covered by water 70% of the time, and even though humans have invented all kinds of boats, there are still many places in the water that are off-limits to us.

It is not surprising that the ghosts gathered in X Lake, triggering all kinds of speculation and rumors among the people. There were too many people who died in that era, and it was a large lake. Coupled with the fact that ghosts like water, it would be strange if nothing happened.

Even in an ordinary city, many ghosts and spirits like to gather in the water. Therefore, there is a small taboo: don’t go swimming at night. It’s easy to have an accident and see things you shouldn’t see.

But the lake of ghosts is not as simple as ghosts liking water. Thinking about this, I felt a little heavy and couldn’t help but light a cigarette.

Even in the darkness not far away, a light inexplicably lit up, followed by screams, and then the noisy sounds of life were not noticed.