Chapter 105: The horror after 11 o’clock

The song only lasted a few seconds, and then it was gone. All that was left was the rushing sound of the water in my ears. The quiet between heaven and earth made me think that the sudden song I just heard was just an illusion. But what about the faint sadness that still echoed in my heart?

“Chengyi, what’s wrong with you?” Uncle Johnny’s face showed a look of confusion. We were clearly having a good chat, but I suddenly froze, then frowned. This behavior was obviously abnormal.

Did Uncle Johnny not hear it? Besides Uncle Johnny and me, there were other people on the deck. I looked up at the others, but except for Lu Shan, who was deep in thought, the others didn’t react in any way.

“Didn’t you hear anything?” I asked in confusion.

Everyone looked at me strangely. Xiao Chengqian even teased me, “What do you want to hear in this river full of vicious fish? I wish there was a sexy foreign girl whispering in my ear, ‘Come on,’ and of course I would be happier with the addition of ‘baby.’ I’ve seen a lot of ‘black pearls’ lately.”

The black pearl in Xiao Chengqian’s mouth refers to an Indian girl with beautiful facial features, but unfortunately her skin is a little dark, which does not meet Xiao’s aesthetic standards.

Ruyue glared at Xiao Chengqian. After this kid had been in close contact with him, there was no longer the kind of deliberate grace and elegance he used to have. He spoke and acted more like a bandit.

But I didn’t care about Xiao Chengqian’s teasing. I didn’t believe I was delusional. I stood up and walked towards the edge of the deck. I thought the singing came from the river, and I could hear it more clearly from the edge of the deck. But at this time, a weak but urgent voice came from Wal-Mart: “Don’t leave me alone in the room. I just hurt my leg. Please, I’m scared.”

“What are you afraid of? Are you such a big man that you’re afraid of the dark like a child?” Xiao Chengqian responded.

“I’m not afraid of the dark. I just heard a woman sing a little while ago. Damn it, that fish must be poisonous, neurotoxic, and that’s why I had the illusion. But anyway, thank you for getting me to the deck.” Volma was so anxious.

But no one took his words seriously. Chengxin even grunted in dissatisfaction, saying, “Are you doubting my medical skills? Can’t you tell if you’re poisoned? Don’t make excuses, okay?”

Volma groaned helplessly, but my heart suddenly jumped. I turned and said, “No, Volma is not making excuses. Huigen, go and carry that guy out. I have something to ask him.”

Hui Gen’er is the most obedient to my words. When she heard me say this, she immediately responded and went to the cabin to carry Walma out.

The Volma who was taken out was very impressed by me. While praising Huigen’s strength and power, he said to me, “Chengyi, I knew it. You are the kindest person here. Even the three women are not as kind as you.”

He didn’t know that his words had inadvertently offended the three women, and the hot-tempered Chengzhen wanted to ‘clean up’ him the next moment.

However, I stopped Seung-jin and asked Volma seriously, “Did you hear someone singing just now?”

Volma obviously didn’t expect me to ask him this, and he said innocently with his big eyes, “It just seemed like it. I’m not sure. The singing just appeared for a moment and then stopped?” Volma looked confused, and finally shrugged at me and said, “Sorry, Chengyi, I really don’t know.”

I wasn’t disappointed by this answer, but looked at Volma and said, “I’ve always been very curious about why Ruan Qingqiu’s faction would take you as a disciple. Now I have a guess. You must answer me honestly, okay?”

“No problem.”

“Are you very talented in spiritual perception?” I asked seriously.

“Yes, at least that’s what my master said. People with outstanding spiritual awareness are all talented people. Not to mention anything else, at least it represents a strong soul, a strong spiritual power… Unfortunately, Chengyi, you know, my family is a rare family with only one child. In your Chinese words, I am a single seedling. I have to be in India for a long time in a year, and I can only go occasionally…” Volma looked proud, as if he had already forgotten the injury he suffered in the afternoon and began to talk endlessly.

I felt like a flock of crows were cawing in my ears, and I couldn’t help but say, “Okay, you don’t need to explain to me why you’re so bad at Taoism. I don’t think I’m interested in knowing.”

Indeed, Wal-Mart is very poor in all aspects of Taoism, and he is barely able to perform even the simplest basic hand techniques and step-by-step movements, let alone advanced Taoist techniques. But he forgot that, as he had said, the first time he had entered the door was still short, and the second time he was able to practice was limited. His family had a lot of things that needed his attention.

This sudden appearance was like a short interlude that quickly passed. We didn’t notice that Uncle Johnny’s face had become a little ugly at that time, nor did we notice that it was already past 10 o’clock in the evening, or that the encounter in the afternoon had left us with lingering fear and not so much the desire to sleep.

Then we started drinking again, chatting, and discussing our plan of action for the future.

Before I knew it, it was 11 o’clock, and there was a large white fog on the river. Before that, I heard the singing several times, but since it didn’t affect us, I didn’t want to increase everyone’s psychological pressure, so I didn’t mention it again.

On two occasions, Walmar was visibly moved, but I stopped him from saying anything by hinting at it.

Because, this singing finally reminded me of something, that is, before entering this stretch of river, Singh told me the legend of a woman who committed suicide, wandering day and night, killing people with her moving singing voice…

“Well, I think we need to rest now. We have important things to do tomorrow.” Uncle Johnny seemed a bit dispirited, and finally, after finishing his whiskey, he suggested that we rest.

At this time, I don’t know why, I subconsciously glanced at my watch, it was just 11 o’clock.

Faced with Uncle Johnny’s proposal, everyone was probably feeling tired and said yes, but at this time, a singing voice that had never been so clear came from the depths of the river.

The singing voice was very soft, but it was so clear. It was an Indian song, and the tune was not as cheerful as the common Indian songs, but instead had an indescribable light sadness. The female voice was so ethereal and misty, mixed with strong personal emotions—it was a kind of desperate sadness that made people sad in an instant.

“Chengyi, after 11 p.m., all sorts of strange things can appear. People should know how to avoid taboos, so it’s best to go to bed before 11 p.m. every night. If you can’t do that, try not to go out after 11 p.m. It’s not that you’re necessarily afraid of strange things, it’s just a matter of respect.” The words of my master once again came to mind. That was a sentence he said when he told me to be respectful of all things when I was a child.

However, after I grew up, I found that the bigger the city, the more this sense of awe was lost. It was useless to have it, because the concentration of people was too great, and human beings had forcibly crushed some of the existing spaces. They did not appear, and awe was no longer needed. Originally, this division was equal and fair, with day and night existing separately.

I don’t know if this is good or bad in a big city.

Putting aside these chaotic thoughts, I still walked towards the deck. At 11 o’clock, did it appear?

This time, it wasn’t just me who heard it, but everyone heard this sad song. Everyone’s reaction was different. The one who was most afraid was naturally Wal-Mart, hiding in the middle of everyone, trembling a little. The other people’s reactions weren’t that big, just a little confused.

However, I, Lushan, Chengxin, and a few others were different. From the shared expressions, we were reminded of our lost lovers, and a bitter despair began to churn in our hearts.

I knew this was definitely not a normal phenomenon. The Penglai was parked in a safe place, and as cultivators, we were all stirred by the distant singing, which was a dangerous sign. So I shouted, “Don’t listen to it seriously. Everyone, recite the meditation mantra in silence.”

But I didn’t expect that as soon as my words fell, Walma, who had been trembling with fear, and Singh, who was not much better, suddenly looked confused and then walked towards me.

I was standing on the edge of the deck, looking out over the river.

“Stop Walmar,” came the voice of Uncle Johnny, his expression sad and painful, but he grabbed Singh by the arm and grabbed a bottle of unfinished wine from the side and poured it over Singh’s head.

I naturally stopped Walma, who was limping towards me, and grabbed him. The easiest way was to slap him hard.

Singh and Walma suddenly came to their senses. Chengqing stepped onto the deck and began to recite the Tao Te Ching aloud. As a cultivator, Chengqing must have the power of thought. Putting that aside, the Tao Te Ching itself has a certain power that cannot be explained, a transcendent power. When reciting it, it can naturally resist the influence of the singing.

In this way, it is the best help for people like Volma and Singh who cannot recite the mantra carefully.

The singing continued, and I sighed helplessly, because without opening my third eye, I could see that after the large mass of white mist on the river, a number of wandering ghosts had emerged.