Chapter 42 — In the Dead of Night, Wild Shadows Draw Near the Village Gate
The Herdsman of the Wasteland · Page 2 of 3
age. Granny Zhu lowered her voice: "There is something strange about this great snake. Ordinarily no strange beast can enter the village at all, yet this great snake could hide in the hamlet, hidden away for years. I fear this snake was deliberately set loose here by someone... This manner of rearing snakes seems to be a trick of the Demon Cult. Heh heh, tonight there may well be some interesting business..." "The great snake was deliberately put into the village by someone to harm people?" Shen Mu was chilled. To do such a thing — surely that was too great a crime against one's own soul? That snake had clearly already devoured several newborn infants. What benefit could there be in rearing a snake on infants? "Mu'er, tonight some strange things may come looking for you. Even if you see them, do not move, do not make a sound. Wait until daybreak and the matter will resolve itself." Granny Zhu chuckled, showing the few scattered teeth in her mouth: "He uses the snake to draw out the essence and souls of infants, then absorbs the snake's essence to reverse his innate nature. He must have been cultivating this for many years; his powers are extraordinary. But if he did such things in the outer world he would surely be hunted down by those who purge demons and guard the Way, so he came into the Wasteland to stir up trouble. Mu'er, the one who comes tonight is beyond you. Just watch." Shen Mu nodded, his heart uneasy. The household bustled for a long while, the family weeping and laughing by turns, and only after a long time did they remember to arrange a place for Granny Zhu and Shen Mu to stay. The husband and wife gave up their main hall and inner room, inviting Granny Zhu and Shen Mu to sleep there. Shen Mu felt this was not quite proper, but Granny Zhu did not decline; she had Shen Mu sleep in the main hall while she took the inner room. Before long the two lay down. Shen Mu had meant to force his eyes to stay open, but as time wore on his lids slowly closed. When it was the third watch of the night and all sounds were still, Shen Mu suddenly shivered despite himself, hurriedly opened his eyes, and found that he could not move at all! The door of the main hall suddenly creaked open, dim light spilled through the crack, and a long shadow appeared on the floor. Shen Mu opened his mouth but found he could make no sound, could not warn Granny Zhu at all! The shadow on the floor swayed, then moved, and actually crawled up from the floor onto the wall; the shadow on the wall twisted, clawing and fanging, more hideous than ever. Cold sweat broke out on Shen Mu's brow, and he saw the shadow on the wall crawl and crawl up to the ceiling, then hang down headfirst, staring fixedly at him. Shen Mu's eyes went wide. What hung down was a shadow, a true shadow, very flat, and yet unimaginably nimble, like a martial artist who had mastered the art of boneless limbs! But this was plainly only a shadow — how could a shadow move about freely? And where was the shadow's master? Whoosh — a breath of wind blew in through the door crack, and with it drifted a small triangular white pennant, which the shadow caught in its hand and waved at Shen Mu. At that moment the door of the inner room where Granny Zhu slept suddenly creaked open a crack, and from the doorway drifted a glimmering silver bead, like the silver pellet Shen Mu had seen in Granny Zhu's room. It halted at the center of Shen Mu's brow and did not move; the bead spun round and round without making the slightest sound, and again and again threads of sword-light, thin as hairs and all but invisible, shot out from it. The black shadow on the ceiling brandished the white pennant, drifting and darting about the room, the pennant coming and going like lightning, again and again attacking Shen Mu as he lay on the bed. The bead moved as well, colliding with the pennant in utter silence, always blocking it. Though these two uncanny things fought fiercely in the room, striking left and right, no s