CHAPTER 4: CONSECRATED WATER ON THE VILLAGE ROAD AND THE ROTTEN WOODEN GATE
Beads of sweat trickled down Lam An's temples. The spirit-cold radiating from the shadowy hands behind him, nearly touching his flesh, made it hard to breathe. The gentle voice, identical to that of his late mother, continued whispering in his ear:
*"An... turn around and look at Mom, sweetheart... Mom's so cold..."*
An squeezed his eyes shut, biting down on his lower lip until the bitter tang of fresh blood spread through his mouth. He told himself: *Don't turn around! That's not Mom!*
Just as that long, stretched-out black shadow pressed against An's back, the old Driver suddenly slammed hard on the motorbike's kickstarter. The engine coughed out a *bang bang* before roaring back to life.
"There we go, kid! Hop on, quick!" the Driver shouted.
Without wasting a second, An jumped onto the back seat and gripped the Driver's shirt tightly with both hands. "Go! Go faster!"
The motorbike shot forward, trailing a plume of gray smoke. Through the bike's narrow rearview mirror, An glanced back with his left eye. In the middle of the empty stretch of road they'd just crossed, there was no mother at all. Only a tall, gaunt black figure in a white disposable raincoat stood motionless beneath the glaring sun, its arms dangling helplessly in the air as if lamenting the loss of a choice morsel.
About ten minutes later, the motorbike turned onto a narrow, winding village road bordered by rows of bamboo swaying in the wind. The air here was unnaturally quiet, completely cut off from the city's hustle and bustle.
"We're at the village gate, kid. Master Vu's house is at the end of that brick-paved alley. The one with two ancient frangipani trees in front of the gate—that's it. This is as far as I go. Any deeper in... gives me the creeps." The Driver paid himself as he spoke, casting an uneasy look into the alley that vanished into the distance.
An nodded his thanks, slung his backpack on again, and hurried into the brick-paved alley.
The alley was narrow, with moss-covered brick walls rising above a person's head on either side. The farther An went, the louder the cicadas buzzing in the fields abruptly faded, until only the crunch of his footsteps remained, breaking apart over the old bricks.
At the end of the alley stood an ancient five-bay wooden house. Two old frangipani trees spread their broad canopies over nearly the entire front yard. But what caught An's attention most was the tightly closed ironwood gate. A tarnished bronze bagua mirror hung from its top, along with a red talisman strip covered in twisting Sanskrit characters.
An approached and raised his hand to knock when...
*Kreeeek...*
The wooden gate crept open a crack on its own, without anyone pushing it. From inside the yard, the heavy scent of burning incense rushed out, mingling with the smell of scorched dry leaves.
"Come in, Lam An. The gate isn't locked." Master Vu's deep, hoarse voice came from the main house.
An drew a deep breath, gently pushed the gate open, and stepped inside. The broad courtyard was paved with smooth traditional clay tiles. In its center sat a large stone incense burner, smoke billowing from it.
A middle-aged man in brown traditional clothes sat on a wooden daybed beneath the house's veranda. His hair was streaked with gray, and his angular, weathered face contrasted with eyes that gleamed like torches. This was Master Vu.
Master Vu did not look at An right away. Instead, he moved nimbly, dipping a mulberry twig into a bowl of old glazed porcelain water before flicking it sharply toward An.
*Sizzle!*
The droplets of consecrated water had barely touched An before black, foul-smelling wisps of smoke rose from his body. A sudden lightness spread through him, as though a stone weighing dozens of pounds had been lifted from his shoulders.
"Sit here." Master Vu pointed to the rattan chair opposite him, his eyes lingering on An's sunglasses. "Take them off. Let me see."
An slowly removed his sunglasses.
His gloomy, deep-set ash-gray left eye was exposed to the light. The moment Master Vu saw it, his brow furrowed. His fingers moved continuously through a series of ritual calculations, and his expression grew more serious by the second.
"So it really is the **Yin-Yang Eye—Ashes**..." Master Vu sighed and set the bowl of water on the table. "The thing that knocked on your door last night didn't just leave you a warning. It attached part of its 'Grudge Root' to your left eye."
"Master... what did you mean on the phone when you said I carried a 'Three-Generation Blood Debt'? My family has always been made up of honest, hardworking people!" An sounded terrified, his trembling voice pleading for help.
Master Vu poured a cup of hot tea and pushed it toward An. He sat in thought for a moment before finally speaking slowly:
"Do you know... why your grandfather suddenly left the village and vanished without a trace back then, and why your father died young in such a strange accident? It all began in 1954, when your grandfather accidentally unearthed an ancient bronze chest beneath the floor of the old house belonging to the Lam family..."