Chapter Eighteen: Shamanic Curse

  After burning the grave, Qin Zhong seemed to outsiders that he didn't consider the consequences at all, and it seemed that he had lost a lot of his good karma. However, in Qin Zhong's heart, he knew very well that what he did was reasonable.

  The old mushroom had been holding back for half a day and finally dared to ask Qin Zhong, "Young man, don't you think that what you're doing is damaging your yin virtue?"

  "What's the point of accumulating good deeds? Why accumulate good deeds, isn't it all about accumulating good karma? Is it just because of this burnt grave?" Qin Zhong's confident expression and questioning tone made Old Mushroom sigh in dismay, completely not understanding Qin Zhong's intentions.

  "Ha! You think these graves are all legitimate? If I had really burned those proper graves, that would be one thing. But the spirits here are all victims of unjust deaths - at least 80 or 90% of them can't reincarnate or be reborn. They have nowhere to go, not even hell will take them in. By burning these graves, I'm giving them a chance to be reborn as animals or something, get it?"

  Qin Zhong's explanation seemed to make the old mushroom understand something: "So you're saying that what you did was reasonable and justified? But after all, you still did things that others didn't dare think about, didn't even dare ask about. And yet you went ahead and did them."

  "Haha, since it's done, it's done." He lowered his head and turned to Yingzi, saying: "Take a look at what's hanging on that tree over there?"

  Yingzi's eyes were super good, she walked up to the tree and looked at the things on it for a few moments, they seemed to be small flags, and when Qin Zhong first entered the village, he passed by a tree that also had these things. This was indeed a very strange thing, so as soon as Qin Zhong entered the village, he felt that this village must have an absolute connection with the Shaman.

  And when he just made a decision, it was also fully considered that this should be done by Saman, and then decided to burn the grave.

  Yingzi looked at it for half a day, and finally said: "Isn't this the soul-sealing curse used by shamans? Look, there's still a hand drum and a hammer on that tree. Someone must have done something here."

  "What? This place has also been cursed by a shaman?" Old Mushroom asked in surprise.

  Qin Zhong nodded and said, "Right, it seems that the shaman who sealed this place at that time should have had his own ideas. This matter is a bit unclear, but only by finding the shaman who cast the curse at that time can the curse on this land be lifted. After all, each shaman's singing skills and foundation are different, with many dialects and singing methods."

  "Hey, Qin Zhong, to be honest with you, I was stuck in that ice palace because I was cursed by the Shaman at the time. If you guys didn't come, I would have left. After meeting my corpse, I would have had to return to it and become a dead person again." Old Mushroom finally spoke his mind.

  Qin Zhong nodded as he listened: "So you want to cut off the skull of your corpse, I suppose you want to take us to find a shaman who you think has the ability to help you lift the curse, and then you can move around freely. Whenever you want to reincarnate, you can go and be reborn."

  Lao Mo heard Qin Zhong's words, a smile appeared at the corner of his mouth: "Hehe, unexpectedly, your analysis skills are so powerful, I really underestimated you, old man. Today, I met a superior person. Since you've come this far, I won't let you return empty-handed. Why don't you help me finish what needs to be done? Old man will think of a way to help you leave afterwards."

  "Hmph, I knew it when I came down. Our path only moves forward, not backward. If we really retreat, let alone others, just the place where your Ice Palace is located, none of us can go up there. Let's go with you to see what Shaman you're looking for."

  The old mushroom's face finally showed a bit of excitement at this time: "That's great, don't worry, as long as I finish my things, I'll definitely go back and play with you guys, and then I can help out."

  "Don't think you're so great just because you're a ghost, I've never been afraid of anything." Qin Zhong said, standing up and dusting off the dirt and yellow earth. He looked around and didn't see anything out of the ordinary, except that in front of him was a forest with trees that seemed to be spaced out more loosely than usual.

  Three people and a ghost, walking in the woods, where birds chirp from time to time, and insects cry out occasionally. It's clear that this place is full of life, but it's strange that such a lively place would be paired with that desolate graveyard village. This is simply a bizarre combination, but for now, it seems that the graveyard village must hold some secrets unknown to others. Or perhaps, from the Ice Palace onwards, everything up until now has been something that Qin Zhong can record in writing.

  After they passed through the forest, Qin Zhong and others were led by Old Mushroom into a narrow stone crevice. This crevice was naturally formed with two huge stones facing each other, leaving only a narrow passage that could allow one person to pass through at a time. Many modern people call this kind of place "夹扁石" (a type of rock formation).

  Qin Zhong walked behind the old mushroom, and after entering the gap between the stones, he quickly exited the stone. After several people had exited the flat stone, a vast expanse of fields unfolded before Qin Zhong and the others. In the distance, it seemed as though they could see a landscape where the sky and water blended into one color.

  A huge question mark was born in Qin Zhong's mind, he didn't know where he was now. He turned his head and looked at the old mushroom: "Where have you brought us? Is it a sea or a river ahead?"

  "Huh, don't you know? We're already at the seaside now. If we want to go back, we'll have to take a big detour along the coastline." The old mushroom seemed very familiar with the terrain here.

  Qin Zhong was very familiar with the maps of China and the world. He could clearly remember that in the northeastern part of Northeast China, there was a place called Haishenwei, which is now known as Vladivostok by Russia. They had only walked to that place, and they could see the sea. Had they really reached the seaside after all this time?

  "My goodness, are we going to Hainan?" Guo Dafu's brainless question left Qin Zhong speechless. He gave Guo a sideways glance, and Guo knew he had misspoken, so he shut his mouth and didn't make another fool of himself.

  Yingzi heard the two words "the sea" and seemed very excited: "I just want to see the sea, I've been listening to my grandfather's stories about the sea since I was a child, if I have the chance to see the sea this time, I will be content for life."

  Qin Zhong was at a loss with these two young people, their words were quite naive, not childish, just not very normal.

  "Alright, let's get going. We're off to see the richest town in this area, Jin Mai Town. This is already Russian territory, so you all need to be careful. Other than that, there's nothing else to say. However, there's a Shamanic altar around here somewhere, which is what I'm looking for, but I don't know where it is right now. We'll have to go into town and ask around."

  "Alright, let's go into town first."

  Four people in a row, entered the town, searched around and finally found a place to stay. The locals were very enthusiastic, just as they entered their residence, the fatigue was immediately written all over their faces.

  The people here are very strange, they not only speak Russian but also fluent Chinese, which makes Qin Zhong stunned.

  "A few of you have come from afar, just rest here for a few days. The dock has been closed for the past two days and it will take some time before big ships can arrive." The boss's words were indeed warm and sincere, making Qin Zhong and others feel very warm inside.

  Because they had been hungry for a long time, the few of them asked for some food and drink at their current accommodation, and then swept everything on the table clean like a whirlwind.

  Having eaten and drunk, the young man who managed the hotel's check-in registration came upstairs, took a look around and said: "There are three of you, this is a two-room suite, the girl will stay inside, and the boys will stay outside."

  This old mushroom is indeed a ghost, normally people can't see him, but after Qin Zhong signed the registration book, he surprisingly found a familiar name appearing on the registration book. Qin Zhong thought to himself that something was wrong, how did he come here too, and even to the same place? Had his own trail been discovered by him? If it's what Qin Zhong thought, then they will encounter even bigger trouble later.