Guma (姑媽) means paternal aunt. Gufu (姑父) is his paternal aunt's husband.

Nisheng (擬生) is roughly translated as pseudo-life/a mimicry of life.

Originally posted on RBKTR Translations.

Author: Four Feet (四隻腳).

Translated by: Yujuan.

After all that had happened today, I was utterly starved. At seven, I entered a j.a.panese-style restaurant with kun.

As I flipped through the menu, the yingyao bounced about by the side.

Its pair of roundish eyes swirled curiously, jumping onto the table, then onto the walls, then jumped back onto my shoulder like a naughty child, playing by itself without a care in the world.

Luckily, other than kun and I, no one else could see the black fur ball.

But I never thought that something that had swallowed me up would look like this.

According to kun, the yingyao's mouth had no form and could widen to no limits. In the distant past, it could even engulf the heavens and earth, and everything the yingyao ate would end up within that boundless darkness.

"Uh, why does it sound like… there's an entire universe fitted inside the yingyao's stomach?"

I couldn't help but laugh out loud.

Frankly, I was still in part disbelief over kun's words.

It felt like he was telling me a story, but at least it sounded pretty interesting to hear.

"Right, you say that the yingyao loves mischief, but why did it choose only me to prank?"

I asked in pa.s.sing as I ate.

"Because there is something troubling you."

I raised my head, not quite understanding.

kun looked at me, "The yingyao cannot speak, but they can observe what clouds the deepest part of a human's heart."

"W-what does that mean…"

"Xiao Mo, did something happen? Is there something that keeps on haunting you?"

Hearing this, I was unable to say anything for a while.

kun poured a cup of sake, drinking it, and slowly said, "If you don't mind, are you willing to tell me?"

I looked at him, and after a long silence, I finally nodded my head.

I had never told anyone about this matter before.

It could have been out of fear, or because no matter what I told them, no one would believe me.

It happened around two months ago, just when I was on the way back from my graduation trip, and pa.s.sed by K City on the way of the journey.

On the outskirts of K City, was an incredibly small village.

One of my distant relatives lived in that village.

Once, when I was in elementary school, I went to live with that relative during the holidays. I called that relative 'guma'.

Guma had a daughter a year older than me. I didn't know her full name, but knew that she was called 'Ah Ying'.

I would play with Ah Ying every day, catching sparrows in the field, fis.h.i.+ng, and eating guma's mung bean cake together. The two then-unsuspecting kids spent a period of joyful days with each other. When my parents came to pick me up, Ah Ying cried.

I couldn't bear to leave her either and promised her, that I would come to play again. But it was a shame that my parents were too busy with work, and I never went back to that small village.

And just like that, ten years pa.s.sed by.

For some reason, I abruptly felt like revisiting that place. And on the way back from my graduation trip, I went to K City on my own.

The village in my memories was located in the center of a range of hills, with a pleasant country scenery, and an honest way of living.

After an hour's worth of tossing around in a car, I finally arrived at that place I went many years ago.

To my surprise, guma had completely forgotten about me.

No matter how much I tried to remind her, how much I tried to tell her I had lived at her house for some time, she could not remember who I was.

I felt a little dismayed, but luckily, Ah Ying recognized me on sight.

That little girl of seven had grown into a slender and elegant woman. Upon seeing me abruptly show up, she broke into tears.

Reunited with an old friend, I was deeply moved, but for some reason, deep in my heart, I felt that there was something wrong with the inhabitants of this village.

They were the same people, the same scenery, and although time had flown, that didn't mean the people changed as things changed.

Nothing had changed, just like before.

What was wrong, then?

After a long while, I was. .h.i.t by a horrifying realization—

It was because nothing had changed that it was strange!

With the exception of Ah Ying, every single person in the village had not changed at all!

Guma and gufu had not aged, seemingly as young as thirty like before; and the village chief that had neared the age of hundred was still strong and healthy today, even going as far as to be even healthier than before; what was more beyond reasonable limits, though, was the kid named 'Xiao Douzi' living next door. Ten years ago, he had been three to four years old, and ten years later, he still had the appearance of a three-year-old!

Everyone in the village seemed to have separated themselves from the mundane world, and the flow of time seemed to have no effect on them.

The strangeness did not stop there.

The expressions of every villager were incredibly stiff, as if they had been smeared with a thick layer of glue. Whenever they spoke or laughed, their facial muscles would twitch unnaturally.

In addition, it was not only guma who had forgotten me. The neighbors I was once familiar with had completely no recollection of me either.

Standing in this familiar yet unfamiliar village, looking at every single face that I had once known, I felt that with the exception of Ah Ying, these people were not the villagers I knew.

But if they weren't those villagers I knew, who were they?

I looked at Ah Ying in bewilderment, but she avoided my gaze.

The atmosphere around those villagers became increasingly strange.

Watching the sky gradually turn dark, Ah Ying pulled me to the side, "Xiao Mo, don't stay here any longer. Don't come back anymore, just act… Act like you never came here and that you're not acquainted with us."

I shook my head, and couldn't help but question, "What happened here? Why is everyone… all… all acting like this? Why are your parents still the same age as before? Why didn't Xiao Douzi grow up? Why?"

Ah Ying sighed, saying, "I don't know the reason either."

"You don't know?"

She nodded, "Xiao Mo, do you remember the back of the mountain?"

"The back of the mountain?" I blinked, and thinking back, said, "The place guma always reminded us to never go?"

"Yes. No one was allowed to step into that place, this was something that had been pa.s.sed down for generations. Although no one knew the reason why, everyone took this rule to heart, from generation to generation, until…"

Ah Ying paused as if she was trying to collect her thoughts.

After a moment, she continued, "Until one day, the village chief's grandson, Ah Hai, was attacked by a pack of wolves during a hunting session. His injuries were critical, and the doctors said that he couldn't be saved. The village chief's wife was broken-hearted to the point of fainting. So that his loved ones wouldn't watch him die, Ah Hai forced himself to sneak out of the village and hid in the back of the mountain where n.o.body was, quietly waiting to die. But for some reason, just a few days later, he came back. He wasn't just alive, all his injuries were fully healed—"

"His injuries were fully healed?"

I was startled.

Ah Ying nodded, "When the villagers saw him, Ah Hai was completely strong and healthy, not a single injury to be seen. The only problem was, he seemed to have lost his memories and knew not a single one of us, including his parents and close relatives."

"He had amnesia?"

"Yes." Ah Ying looked at me, "But then, what concerned the people more than his amnesia was why was he still alive? Even the doctors had said that he wouldn't survive, so how was it possible that he had completely recovered in just a few days' time?"

"That's right, how?"

I couldn't help but ask that too.

Ah Ying shook her head, "n.o.body knew at the time, only that their questions would definitely be found at the back of the mountain. The villagers voted, and everyone decided to investigate that place."

"Did you go along?" I asked.

"I did not go."

Ah Ying shook her head, "I was still young, and the old and young were left behind in the village. The village chief's son, Ah Hai's father, brought a group of fit men into the back of the mountain."

"What happened next? Did they discover anything?" I asked urgently.

"Yes. They discovered a tree."

"A tree?"

I furrowed my brows, not understanding.

A trace of pain appeared gradually on Ah Ying's face, and muttered, "It was all because of that tree, the villagers became like this, all because of that tree…"

I became increasingly baffled.

Ah Ying seemed to calm down somewhat, "I have never actually seen this tree because all the young women were forbidden to go to the back of the mountain, but according to the others, that tree is humungous, towering high above the clouds. Its verdant and lush branches reach up to a hundred meters, and its thickset tree trunk cannot be surrounded by even ten people.

"They say the tree must be more than a few thousand years old, but n.o.body has seen a tree like this before, nor can it be discerned. They only know that light purple serum is secreted from its bark, and that it gives a mystical healing effect."

Hearing this, I suddenly understood. I was awed, "So the village chief's grandson was healed by that serum? That tree saved his life?"

"Mm, according to the traces of blood leading to the tree, they guessed that Ah Hai who was on the brink of death must have leaned on this tree and was smeared with the serum."

Ah Ying smiled bitterly, "From that day onwards, the news of 'a thousand-year tree with the powers of recovery'traveled around the village, and that tree was revered as a G.o.dly tree. Every family brought a bottle to collect the serum and the back of the mountain, naming it the 'omnipotent medicine'.

"Regardless of whether it was a burn, bruise, cut, or even a mortal wound, as long as you put on that serum, the wounds would immediately heal, not even a single scar left behind. The effects were much more miraculous than imaginable, so much so that… so much so that it would… it would…"

"It would what?"

I frowned.

Ah Ying lowered her head, mumbling, "There was once, Xiao Douzi from next door was in a car accident, I saw with my own eyes the car tires rolling over his head… B-but, after using the purple serum, his head was slowly reattached… And Xiao Douzi w-was revived…"

"Is that… really true?"

I was thoroughly shocked.

I had never imagined that there was actually a medicine that could revive the dead!

"Yes, I swear this is absolutely true. But after Xiao Douzi was revived, not once has he grown in the past ten years from that three-year-old appearance… Actually, it's not just Xiao Douzi, time seems to have stopped for every single person who has put on that serum. They never die or grow old… But as a price, they will lose part of their memories… But n.o.body cares about that, because they all want to live forever…"

Ah Ying smiled painfully, raising her head to look at me, "In this entire village, other than me, everyone has put on that serum. That's why n.o.body seems to remember you."

I was at a loss for a moment, then shook my head, "No, I don't think it's as simple as losing a part of their memories. I think… I think that those villagers aren't the same people I knew before. Ah Ying, I think you shouldn't stay in this village any longer, why don't you leave this suspicious place along with me?"

Ah Ying took a step back, shaking her head, "No, I can't leave. Even if they've lost their memories, they're still my parents, my relatives, my friends. Xiao Mo, you should hurry and leave! Don't come back ever again, go, quickly!"

With that said, she pulled me towards the entrance of the village.

But unexpectedly, a crowd had already gathered before the entrance, their faces carrying rigid and grotesque smiles that stared straight at me.

Guma walked over, a cleaver in her hand, "Xiao Mo, leaving so soon?"

I was frightened by the gathering of forces, momentarily not knowing what to say.

Ah Ying walked forward, "Mom, please let Xiao Mo go."

"Ah Ying, you know that all these years, we have never let an outsider go once they step into the village. They'll have to stay here forever."

"Yes! Never let go! Stay here forever!"

"Stay here! Stay here!"

The villagers chorused and hooted, slowly encircling the both of us.

Ah Ying suddenly rushed forth, blocking her mother, turning her head to shout at me, "Xiao Mo, run!"

"But…"

"No buts! Run!"

She roared.

I clenched my teeth regretfully, and with a stomp of my foot, turned to run.

Before even running even more than ten meters, a blood-curdling scream rang out.

I turned, watching in shock as Ah Ying's mother beheaded her, the entire head flying off, fresh blood spilling on the ground and rolling into the gully by the fields.

I stumbled in fright, collapsing onto the ground, wanting more than anything to run back to Ah Ying, but could only climb back up, holding back my tears, and continue to run for my life.

I didn't know how long I ran, or how much I ran, but I ran until all my strength was drained, until I couldn't move, and I gradually stopped.

The villagers chasing after me were gone, and I leaned against a rock. I was yet to recover from the shock, breathing heavily, and slid powerlessly onto the ground. Thinking about Ah Ying, tears streamed down my face.

As the setting sun diminished, the sky darkened.

I stayed on a path a distance away from the village for a long time, thinking that I should report this to the police. But my phone had fallen from my hand in the process of running earlier, and there wasn't a telephone booth nearby either.

After hesitating for three hours, until nine-thirty at night, I made a bold decision. I decided to secretly return to the village to have a look.

Even if this decision was overly impulsive, and I shouldn't return all on my own, before confirming Ah Ying's situation with my own eyes, I didn't have the heart to leave this place.

To a desolate place as this little village, nine o'clock was already in the dead of the night for them. I crept through the road back.

The nearer I got to the village, the more frantic my heart jumped.

Ah Ying lay silently on the mud beside the fields, under a dark and gloomy haze of the moonlight.

There was no one around, and I gathered the courage to slowly proceed forward.

The dark brown earth was soaked in blood, a concentrated scent blowing over through the wind.

Other than the scent of blood, I could smell something faintly insipid in the air.

I squatted beside Ah Ying's corpse. Her skull had been returned to its original place, her neck covered in a viscous and transparent serum. That serum was what was giving out that insipid smell.

This was probably the omnipotent medicine, the serum secreted by the thousand-year tree.

Was this 'medicine' really that miraculous? Would it really revive someone?

With some degree of curiosity and doubt, I kept watch beside Ah Ying's corpse with a heavy frame of mind.

I waited, and when midnight arrived, Ah Ying really did sit up slowly!

Her eyes did not open, face expressionless, sitting there like a doll.

A bundle rose out from the top of her head, rising higher and higher, until something extended from the end of it. It slowly unfolded, turning into a thin and flat surface.

Looking at it, it was as if there was a round and transparent lotus leaf at the top of Ah Ying's head.

That 'lotus leaf' shone with a clear radiance under the moonlight, dispersing a lightly sweet scent.

What… was this?

Before I could scrutinize it closer, that lotus leaf suddenly folded with a clap, enveloping Ah Ying's entire face, like a piece of thin transparent membrane tightly sticking on her skin.

"Ah Ying…"

I murmured her name.

Ah Ying slowly opened her eyes, looking at me with vacant and empty eyes. After a long while, her face broke into a rigid and unfamiliar smile, and like a puppet on a string, clumsily stood up. Not once looking back at me, she turned, walked step after step through the dense night scene, slowly walking away.

I stood there for a long while, before finally coming to a realization.

She was not the Ah Ying that I knew, not anymore.

The Ah Ying I knew was no longer in this world.

Saying all this in one go, the pain seemed to lodge a stone in my throat, making me momentarily unable to breathe.

I raised my head, pouring the cup of sake down my throat.

kun sat in his seat listening seriously, and right until I finished speaking, he said slowly, "That tree was a nisheng."

"Nisheng?"

I looked at him bewilderedly.

kun nodded, "To put it in easy terms, it is a type that lies between a plant and an animal. They love the human way of living, but are structured like a plant."

"They are structured like a plant, but love the human way of living?"

I tilted my head, unable to understand, "What do you mean?"

kun poured me a cup of sake as he said, "A love for imitating humans are the basic characteristics of every nisheng species, but there are more than a thousand types of nisheng. They usually hide out of sight from the human world, and turns out that tree you mentioned was one of those types."

Saying this, kun paused for a moment, then said, "According to what you said, I'm guessing that tree must be its original form, and those villagers are the children 'imitating the shape of a human' it propagated."

"Children it propagated?"

I furrowed my brows, getting increasingly bewildered as I listened.

kun sipped his sake, slowly explaining with his usual unhurried and flat tone of voice, "Using human terms to describe it, that light purple serum secreted by the nisheng were its eggs. When the egg cells invaded through the wounds of the body, it would rapidly absorb its nutrients and become completely incubated in a short amount of time, occupying the human's body. That lotus leaf growing from the top of that woman's head was the egg cell trying to incubate. Finished incubating, that nisheng species would be successfully planted into the human body—"

"So, that person I saw… Wasn't actually Ah Ying, but something that was produced by the nisheng?"

I couldn't help but interrupt kun, eyes widening in shock.

kun nodded.

"So everyone in the village, were all, all invaded by the nisheng… Those still living… Are all…"

I couldn't finish my sentence.

I closed my eyes painfully, familiar faces surfacing in my mind.

Guma, gufu, the village chief, Xiao Douzi from next door, and… And Ah Ying…

These people were all gone.

But if I told anyone, n.o.body would believe me.

I could only choose to keep silent.

The yingyao seemed to sense something wrong with the atmosphere. It no longer jumped here and there, complacently sitting in the corner, its pair of huge roundish green eyes silently gazing at me.

I lowered my head, downing one cup after another.

The warm and sharp alcohol sloshed down my throat, setting it on fire.

kun did not try to console me, just silently accompanying me as I drank.

The two of us drank till midnight.

To the end, I drank until I was giddy and fast asleep, not knowing how I got out of that shop.

Through my hazy awareness, I could hear kun calling out to me.

But it wasn't clear to me what he was saying. I tried my best to open my eyes, giving him a dopey smile, and when my head slumped, I returned to sleep.

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