Twilight Boundary
Chapter 45: Magic of Suppressing Nightmares

Chapter 45: Chapter 45: Magic of Suppressing Nightmares

That day, Hu Ma stayed at the Manor, had a meal with the Second Master, and returned to the village before dusk fell.

He lit an oil lamp, read for a while, then lay down on his bed early to sleep.

Nowadays, with the help of that Er Guotou fellow, the Shousui man’s Path had some direction, and the rest was nothing more than taking it step by step and planning gradually.

Yet Hu Ma, who slept soundly and dreamlessly through the night, was unaware that within the village, at the residence of the Cui Family’s eldest son, several of the Cui brothers, along with Cui Xie’er’s mother and sisters-in-law, had already gathered around the square table.

On the table, only one oil lamp burned, its flickering light casting their faces in shifting patterns of light and shadow. Cui Xie’er had been driven outside. The Cui Family’s eldest son, his face cold, pounded the table forcefully.

"The Clan Leader sent his own grandson in, and now he’s pretending to be a good person," he said. "He won’t even budge on getting that Hu kid out and letting our Xie’er take his place. It should be a simple matter!"

"..."

The others, upon hearing this, were also indignant.

The Cui Family had agreed to pay a hefty price this time, but that muddle-headed Old Clan Chief still refused in the end.

"Heh, the Zhou Family is afraid of us too..."

At this moment, Grandma Cui, sitting on the side of the bed with disheveled, gray hair, suddenly let out a cold laugh. "Our Xie’er is a sensible child," she said. "If he joined the Red Lantern Society, he would surely perform better than his grandson. In the future, he could at least become a manager, maybe even a Shopkeeper."

"The Zhou Family only became the Clan Leader by relying on their second son’s abilities and their greater numbers. Our Cui Family isn’t lacking either."

"He’s worried that our Cui Family will eventually overshadow his Zhou Family!"

At first, the Cui brothers were merely puzzled. The Old Clan Chief had clearly been tempted, so why did he ultimately refuse? Now, hearing Grandma Cui’s words, they suddenly understood. That old bastard actually had such a scheme! Truly shameless...

After cursing, they looked at one another, feeling this matter might not succeed. "So what should we do?" one hesitated.

"A bunch of useless louts! This old woman still has to step in."

Seeing these grown men so clueless, Grandma Cui grew angry and pounded the bedboard. "Eldest! Don’t just stand there gawking. Come here and help me pull out that black-wrapped box from under the bed."

"Huh?"

The Cui Family’s eldest son was stunned for a moment, then he understood and grew somewhat excited.

He was older and remembered clearly. His mother also knew a few things and had enjoyed some prominence in her youth. But later, after the Hu Family came to the village, for reasons unknown, she put her things away and stopped using them. _{f(r)eew(e)bnovel.(c)o(m)}

Back when Cui E got into trouble, it was Grandma Cui who spoke up, insisting they keep the small gold grain. She had said it wasn’t a big deal and to save it for Xie’er’s future marriage.

Unfortunately, the Hu Family later meddled and caused the girl’s death.

The box was dragged out. Grandma Cui fumbled under the head of the bed for a key and opened it.

Inside were red papers, white talismans, and some strange objects. Some resembled bones, others looked like hair.

Seeing these items, Grandma Cui’s gaze grew profound. She slowly scanned the objects in the box, her demeanor taking on an air of authority.

After pondering for a long time, she took out a black, dried, jerky-like object from the box. "Wife of my second son," she said to Cui Xie’er’s mother, "aren’t you pregnant again? Tomorrow, go to the old fire pit and burn paper offerings to thank the ancestors... Burn this thing along with them."

The wife of the second son, though confused, timidly took the object and agreed, nodding repeatedly.

"Eldest, Third," Grandma Cui continued, taking out a paper man and some hair. "You two, go and bury this under the crooked-neck tree behind the Hu Family’s house. Remember, only go after my second son’s wife has burned the paper offerings. And don’t let anyone in the village see you..."

The eldest and third sons quickly agreed.

Grandma Cui then looked at the Cui Family’s fourth son beside her. "You, stop standing around. Don’t you enjoy drinking and gambling? Go on, go play. It’s fine even if you get into a brawl."

The Cui Family’s fourth son hadn’t expected such a good thing and nodded eagerly.

After all the instructions were given, the family felt a knot of anxiety. "If we do this, will our Xie’er really get the chance?"

Grandma Cui shot them a glare. "If you lot had a Method, would you still need this old woman?"

Instantly, no one in the room dared to speak.

「...」

Hu Ma tidied up his house and packed his belongings, preparing for the trip to the city. Everything else was in order, but the pouch filled with ashes from the old fire pit had to be kept on his person at all times.

He had made simple preparations and was ready to leave at any moment. But one morning, he suddenly woke up feeling dizzy, his mouth parched.

His throat felt as if he had swallowed a burning coal—dry and painful. When he touched his forehead, it was alarmingly hot.

Am I running a fever?

He was mildly surprised, even a bit speechless.

Right. When he hadn’t consumed enough Tai Sui meat, his body was always ice-cold, incapable of generating even a bit of warmth.

Now, perhaps with sufficient Blood Food, he was actually burning up...

Groggy, he struggled to get up, intending to ladle some water to soothe his throat. But his body felt heavy, and he could barely walk steadily.

It seemed he wasn’t just sick; he was seriously ill.

After drinking some water, he had intended to make some congee but found he had no appetite. So, he lay back down on the bed to rest.

Around noon, Zhou Datong came over. He pushed the door open and said, "Brother Hu Ma, Grandpa said we should all go to my place for dinner tonight."

"He wants to tell us about the rules for when we get to the prefectural city..."

"...Huh? Why are you still in bed at this hour?"

"..."

Hu Ma, weak and listless, waved his hand. "I think I’m sick."

"You really picked a fine time for this. We’re supposed to go to the prefectural city in a few days."

Zhou Datong came over and touched Hu Ma’s forehead. Finding it rather hot, he quickly went out. A short while later, the Clan Leader came to check on him, and the Second Master arrived too, looking quite concerned. However, after examining Hu Ma, they found no signs of any evil spirit and concluded it was just a common cold.

After all, with Granny now residing in the old fire pit, it seemed unlikely any evil spirit in the village would dare to trouble Hu Ma. So, they merely offered him some words of comfort and sympathy.

"With your Granny gone, you, a half-grown lad, really don’t know how to look after yourself."

"We’ll get someone to fetch you some herbal medicine. Drink it warm, and you’ll feel better."

"..."

So, Zhou Datong ran off to get herbal medicine for Hu Ma and also brought him a couple of steamed buns from his own home.

After drinking the herbal medicine, Hu Ma felt somewhat better. Remembering he needed to go to the Clan Leader’s house to learn the rules, he got up in the evening.

But just as he was about to step outside, another wave of dizziness washed over him.

For some reason, the air he exhaled felt scorching hot, and golden spots danced before his eyes. He struggled to steady himself, but after taking only a few steps, he nearly collapsed.

Looking up, he saw that night had fallen. The trees around the village seemed to sway, their branches like the grasping claws and bared teeth of ghostly figures.

Strange laughter echoed in his ears, accompanied by a bone-chilling cold.

In his daze, he suddenly saw Little Hongtang jump in front of him, baring her teeth at the encroaching darkness.

Hu Ma’s heart suddenly lurched; something felt wrong. He hurriedly asked Little Hongtang, "Who are you snarling at? Is... is there something over there?"

"I don’t know." At his question, Little Hongtang seemed a bit confused, shaking her small head. "But Little Hongtang feels... there’s something. But I don’t know what that something is."

"..."

Something? A chill gripped Hu Ma’s heart. Am I really just sick, or is this... something else?

He tried desperately to stand, but his body was too weak. He suddenly fell and lost consciousness.

Little Hongtang grew anxious and dragged Hu Ma back inside. The village was eerily silent, the deep darkness outside seeming to writhe and shift, concealing unknown things within it.

The villagers had all closed their doors and retired early. None of them knew that beside the old fire pit, where the wife of Cui’s second son had burned paper offerings for the ancestors during the day, a black smoke now lingered, swirling about as if concealing something.

After Granny’s passing, the old clan members had arranged for able-bodied men to patrol the village. Today, however, their attention was diverted by news of gambling in the rear of the village, which had escalated into a fight.

No one in the entire village noticed Hu Ma lying unconscious in his small house.

「Meanwhile, at the Cui Residence」

Grandma Cui was scolding Cui Xie’er. "Go quickly to the Clan Leader’s house and learn the rules! If you don’t learn them properly, how will you know who you can afford to offend and who you can’t once you get to the city?"

Cui Xie’er sulked. "I wasn’t even chosen. What’s the point of me going to listen?"

"You’ll listen anyway," Grandma Cui sneered. "What if the one chosen first can’t go? Wouldn’t you have to take his place then?"

"Listen to your grandma and go!"

"..."

Seeing his grandma angered and getting a kick from his eldest uncle, Cui Xie’er grudgingly went. At the Clan Leader’s house, the Second Master was instructing Zhou Datong and several other children. He was visibly surprised when Cui Xie’er suddenly arrived.

The second son of the Cui family, who had brought Cui Xie’er, quickly put on a smile. "We heard you were teaching the rules, so I brought Xie’er along to listen in. What if he gets a chance to go to the city too, eh?"

Seeing this, the Second Master couldn’t help but frown slightly, a vague sense of unease stirring within him.

Back at the Cui residence, the Cui Family’s eldest son was also worried. Seeing no one else around, he cautiously asked his mother, "Mother, are you sure nothing will go wrong? What if the Second Master finds out..."

"..."

"You’re more timid than a mouse dropping!"

Grandma Cui cursed angrily, then snorted coldly. "With you lot being so timid, afraid of wolves ahead and tigers behind, what can you possibly accomplish?"

"You can rest assured. Your mother has acted decisively. By the time they figure it out, it’ll be far too late..."

"..."

"..."

At the same moment Hu Ma fell unconscious, he was in a daze, on the verge of sleep. He felt as if his entire body were a burning coal, as if the stove within him had cracked open and the fire inside was now consuming him, leaving him muddled and delirious.

Yet, just then, he felt a faint coolness emanating from his chest.

In his blurred state, he seemed to see Granny’s figure appear beside him. She looked at him with tender concern and said, "Grandson, my good grandson, don’t sleep."

"Get up. Go behind the house and find that crooked-neck Chinese parasol tree. Chop it three times."

"Get up!"

"Chop it three times, and you’ll be fine."