At that moment, Li Zhuiyuan felt as if he had been doused with a bucket of ice water, a chilling sensation spreading through his entire body. In a daze, it felt as though his soul had been frightened right out of his body. The only reason it hadn’t was because this wasn’t reality, and his physical body wasn’t present.

“Run!”

Li Zhuiyuan grabbed Qin Li’s hand, stood up, and started to run. But before they had taken more than a few steps, the group of old grandmothers, who had been washing dishes with sand just moments before, collectively stood in their path, blocking their escape. Their seemingly frail and aged bodies remained unmoving, no matter how much Li Zhuiyuan pushed or bumped against them.

In his desperation, the absurd thought that came to Li Zhuiyuan’s mind was: No wonder Great-Grandpa’s paper craft business was so good; the quality of materials and workmanship was truly exceptional. In truth, a forceful escape was futile. He was still small and lacked any real strength, possessing none of the techniques Great-Grandpa and Liu Jinxia employed. He had initially believed he could evade this situation by hiding, and he had almost succeeded, but it all fell apart at the very last moment.

He turned, faced the Cat-Faced Old Woman, and forced himself to remain calm. His mind then raced, searching for any useful knowledge he might possess. He didn’t need to search too hard, as he had only read one book—an introductory encyclopedia, and only four volumes of it at that. It was truly a case of “regretting having read too little when it mattered most.” Now, he could only attempt to improvise with the knowledge he already had.

As it turned out, Li Zhuiyuan actually found something that seemed to fit. Volume 3, Chapter 12 of the *Records of Strange Tales of Jianghu* documented a special type of undead creature: the Corpse Demon. It described how a person with profound resentment, while floating in water, might encounter the corpse of an animal imbued with a similar malevolent aura. Through a strange twist of fate, the two would merge, creating an eerie entity that was neither truly human nor truly demonic.

This type of undead possessed special abilities. For instance, the book mentioned a Corpse Demon found in the Changbai Mountains of Northeast China, which was a fusion of a human and a “Yellow Weasel Immortal.” It could conjure enchanting mists and bewitch people, but was eventually vanquished by the righteous path. Li Zhuiyuan didn’t know what “the righteous path” referred to in this context, nor did he feel the need to. Every account of the undead in the book concluded with them being “vanquished by the righteous path.” Whether they were truly destroyed, or by which sect—monks, Taoists, lamas, or sorcerers—was irrelevant. It seemed the author of the handwritten book simply used “vanquished by the righteous path” as a stock ending for every entry.

The Cat-Faced Old Woman before him bore a strong resemblance to a Corpse Demon. However, to firmly apply that concept, he first had to confirm she had died in a river. If she had died elsewhere, she wouldn’t be classified as a ‘dead fall’ and thus wouldn’t be covered in the *Records of Strange Tales of Jianghu*. Yet, this old woman’s clothes were spotless, and her hair was gray and fluffy. She bore no resemblance to a water ghost; the standard template, like Little Yellow Oriole, was soaking wet from head to toe. Li Zhuiyuan felt… this was probably beyond the scope of his knowledge.

The Cat-Faced Old Woman withdrew her extended head, bent down, and picked up a piece of braised pork belly and a chicken leg from the ground. She had noticed something amiss because of these two items on the ground; they didn’t align with her simple, accustomed perceptions within the dream.

“Such good food! How could you waste it like this? This is going to bring…” The Cat-Faced Old Woman stopped herself before uttering the last word. Clearly, for her to say those two words, given her current identity, would be the true taboo. She opened her mouth and, disregarding the grime, placed the meat and chicken leg inside, chewing with obvious enjoyment and a sense of rapture.

“Back then, if only I’d had a bowl of corn porridge, how wonderful that would have been.” Her eyes filled with a faraway look, recalling a time when, curled in bed, gazing at a closed door, that very thought had been her greatest desire for a long time, perhaps even… a distant hope. Yet, in the end, she had not received even a single grain of rice or a drop of water.

The Cat-Faced Old Woman looked at Li Zhuiyuan again, but before she could speak, he addressed her first: “Hello, Grandma. Happy Birthday to you.”

The Cat-Faced Old Woman was silent. This birthday greeting silenced even the Corpse Demon.

After a long pause, the Cat-Faced Old Woman extended a hand towards Li Zhuiyuan. Li Zhuiyuan noticed fine fur on the back of her hand, and her fingernails were long and sharply pointed. He didn’t flinch, allowing her hand to reach his face. The familiar sensation of an ice pack on his face returned, identical to what he had felt that day in Liu Jinxia’s hall.

“Grandma has realized, little child, you’re not only handsome but also very clever. That day, when my eldest son was leaving, you intentionally directed him to wash his hands near you, so that I, Grandma, could leave your body and return to his, right?”

“I was afraid Grandma would forget her way home.”

“Really?”

“And I also thought you might be more accustomed to him carrying you.”

“No…” The Cat-Faced Old Woman’s finger slid to Li Zhuiyuan’s lips. “Now, I prefer the little one to carry me.”

Next, the Cat-Faced Old Woman looked at Qin Li, who was standing behind Li Zhuiyuan. “What a beautiful little girl.”

Li Zhuiyuan quickly interjected, “She has a mental issue, can’t speak, and has a bad temper. She bites people often.”

“Oh, really? No wonder when I saw her during the day, she just sat there, completely still. Ah, what a pity, such a beautiful young girl.” As she spoke, the Cat-Faced Old Woman’s attention returned to Li Zhuiyuan’s face. “Little child, Grandma truly likes you. Just stay with Grandma for a while.”

“Don’t you have…” Li Zhuiyuan immediately caught himself, correcting his words. “Yes, I’ll accompany Grandma.” He had been about to ask if she didn’t have her own grandchildren, but quickly realized that would be akin to opening a can of worms.

The Cat-Faced Old Woman nodded with a smile and told Fat Chef and the others, “Everyone has worked hard. Let’s eat together.” According to local custom, during banquets, after the first two rounds of guests had finished eating and everyone had been served, one or two tables would finally be set for the cooks, helpers, and family members.

“Alright, old mistress,” Fat Chef replied. He and the grandmothers regained some life, starting to pack things up in preparation for dinner.

“Little child, you come too.” After giving her instructions, the Cat-Faced Old Woman turned and walked out of the kitchen. Li Zhuiyuan noticed that her footprints left watery marks, and the cloth shoes on her feet were exceptionally dark, making a constant “creaking” sound as she walked, as if they were waterlogged. So, this was the clue?

“Come on, little child, let’s eat,” Fat Chef said, grabbing Li Zhuiyuan’s hand and breaking his train of thought. Seeing that the grandmothers hadn’t tried to seize Qin Li, Li Zhuiyuan realized the Cat-Faced Old Woman clearly had no interest in the “mentally unwell” girl. He released Qin Li’s hand and turned to tell her: “You go first… no, just stay here and don’t move.” He didn’t know where she could go anyway, and it was safer for her to remain in the kitchen. After all, the old woman wanted him, not her.

Li Zhuiyuan was led out of the kitchen. The area outside, which had been bustling with people, was now eerily silent. It wasn’t that there was no one; on the contrary, there were many people, standing shoulder to shoulder, a dense, dark mass pressed together. Yet, no one uttered a sound or made the slightest movement. The original tables, chairs, and benches had already been cleared and stacked against the walls, leaving only two somewhat open areas. One area held a table laden with food and wine, while the other was occupied by the three child opera performers. Everyone else stood tightly packed around them, waiting to watch the after-dinner performance.

Fat Chef forcefully pulled Li Zhuiyuan over to the table. The Cat-Faced Old Woman was already seated at the head of the table. She patted the empty seat beside her. “Come, little child, sit next to Grandma.”

Li Zhuiyuan had no choice but to sit. As he did, he deliberately glanced back in the direction they had come from, only to see that Qin Li had not stayed obediently in the kitchen. She had followed them out and was now standing among the crowd, her gaze fixed on him. *They don’t care about you, so why are you still pushing forward?*

The Cat-Faced Old Woman noticed too, and asked with a smile, “Perhaps we should call her over to sit with us?”

“No, Grandma, she’s already eaten. She has a bad temper and is shy around strangers; she might make everyone uncomfortable while they eat.”

“Oh? Then why do you still play with her?”

“She’s a neighbor, so I just played with her.”

“Hehe, you are certainly kind-hearted.” The Cat-Faced Old Woman placed her hand on Li Zhuiyuan’s head, stroking it gently. “I helped raise all my grandchildren when they were little. Back then, they would all call me ‘Grandma.’ But when they grew up, each one of them wished I would die sooner. They all thought that because I was an old ‘immortal,’ I prevented them from doing well, from living a good life, or from getting rich.”

Li Zhuiyuan listened silently.

“I can’t understand how they turned out that way. Maybe it truly is my fault; perhaps I lived too long and drained their good fortune. Is that why I’m sorry to them? I think it would be better if I died sooner and reincarnated early, for their sake, little child. Don’t you agree?”

*If you truly thought that, how did you become one of the undead?* According to the general outline at the beginning of *Records of Strange Tales of Jianghu*, the undead are beings catalyzed by profound resentment. *If you had no resentment, how could you be sitting here now? By longing?*

“Grandma, you absolutely mustn’t think that way. My mother once told me that when dealing with an animal, it’s quite foolish to reflect on oneself or try to understand it.”

“Oh… your mother truly speaks wisely.” The Cat-Faced Old Woman paused, then chuckled to herself. “Hehe, I think so too, but ultimately, I still feel a little reluctant. After all, they are children I raised myself.”

“But did they treat you as a mother, or a grandmother?”

“In my eyes, they are still just children, aren’t they? And children always make mistakes, don’t they?”

“But they’ve become grandfathers and grandmothers themselves, and have been parents. How could they not understand your feelings, yet they still acted this way?”

“Yes, they are truly despicable!!!” The green light in the Cat-Faced Old Woman’s eyes began to swirl rapidly, and sharp teeth emerged, pushing past her lips. “Little child, what you’ve said is so true, absolutely true! Grandma, I truly cherish you beyond words!”

This time, two hands gripped Li Zhuiyuan’s face, kneading it relentlessly. Li Zhuiyuan felt his face was about to freeze solid. “Grandma… please, don’t let them off.”

The Cat-Faced Old Woman released Li Zhuiyuan’s face, gripping the tabletop with both hands, her fingernails leaving ten deep indentations. “Exactly! How could I possibly let them off? These wretches are even worse than us animals!”

Li Zhuiyuan thought: *Worse than us animals?* *So, was the dominant spirit of this Corpse Demon a cat?*

The Cat-Faced Old Woman turned her head to Li Zhuiyuan, enunciating each word carefully: “Little child, watch closely. I will make them pay for what they’ve done!”

*Will I live to see it?*

Li Zhuiyuan immediately agreed, “Absolutely, Grandma!” He felt no guilt about subtly guiding her hatred. He was merely filling in the solution steps, having already figured out the answer. Even without his prompting, the old woman would have done this anyway. If he had tried to persuade her to let go of her resentment, his own head would have been opened first.

At that moment, Fat Chef spoke up. “Old mistress, may we begin eating at this table?”

The Cat-Faced Old Woman asked, “Is everyone here?”

“It’s just us.”

“What about the family members?”

Fat Chef scratched his head. “You’re the only family member here. None of your children came.”

“Not them. We’ve borrowed someone else’s space, tables, chairs, bowls, and chopsticks. It’s against custom not to invite them to the banquet.”

Li Zhuiyuan said, “Grandma, they’re not hungry. They’re already asleep. Don’t wake them.”

“How can that be?” The Cat-Faced Old Woman suddenly stared at Li Zhuiyuan with an ominous gaze. “For this final feast, everyone must be called. Otherwise, it would be against custom, and people would gossip behind our backs.”

“There’s really no need, Grandma.”

“Whoosh!” The Cat-Faced Old Woman grabbed Li Zhuiyuan’s neck with one hand, lifting him completely off the ground. “Little child, you weren’t well-behaved just now, hehehe.”

At this very moment, in the upstairs bedroom, Li Zhuiyuan, who was sound asleep with his forehead resting on his desk, convulsed in pain, gasping for air. “Grandma… I’m wrong… I’m wrong…” Li Zhuiyuan clutched her hand with both of his, but couldn’t pry her grip open. His legs thrashed aimlessly. The sensation of death was incredibly vivid.

In the distance, Qin Li, standing amidst the crowd, began to twitch her eyelashes. Her body started to tremble, and the tremors grew increasingly intense.

“Thump!”

The Cat-Faced Old Woman released her grip. Li Zhuiyuan fell to the ground, freed from her hold, and began to gasp for air. *She would still kill him!* *She wasn’t human; she was a Corpse Demon, and ferocity was her very nature!*

Li Zhuiyuan turned his head to look at Qin Li in the crowd. Upon meeting his gaze, Qin Li seemed to find some solace, slowly lowered her eyes once more, and her body gradually stopped trembling. In the upstairs bedroom, the pain on Li Zhuiyuan’s face slowly faded, and his breathing steadied as he slept slumped over his desk.

The Cat-Faced Old Woman said, “Little child, you must be taught well from a young age.”

“Grandma, you’re right,” Li Zhuiyuan said, picking himself up and walking back to the table.

“If you feel he can’t be taught properly, you should drown him early. Otherwise, he might grow up to be a heartless menace, don’t you agree?”

Li Zhuiyuan picked up a plate of braised fish from the table and swapped its place with the fried peanuts in front of the Cat-Faced Old Woman. Then, he sat down and nodded. “Exactly, yes.”

“Hmm…” A smile reappeared on the Cat-Faced Old Woman’s face. She reached out and gently touched the red mark on Li Zhuiyuan’s neck. “You’re still such a good little child. Did Grandma hurt you just now?”

“Grandma was teaching me a lesson; I understand.”

“Good.” The Cat-Faced Old Woman looked at Fat Chef. “Go invite everyone. Bring all the family members here to eat.”

“Alright, we’re on it.” Fat Chef and the dishwashing grandmothers each rose from the table and left to call for people.

As Fat Chef reached the staircase, which had previously vanished, it reappeared. He jogged up, his corpulent body jiggling with each step. Reaching the second-floor landing, he walked to Li Sanjiang’s bedroom, pushed the door open, and saw Li Sanjiang asleep on the bed. “Come on, time to eat!”

Fat Chef walked to the bedside, reached out, and grabbed Li Sanjiang’s wrist. Next, he would pull out the man’s soul and bring it to the feast.

However, suddenly, Fat Chef felt the environment around him distort. One moment he was in the bedroom, the next he was in a vast square surrounded by majestic palaces. Then, directly in front of him, he saw: an old man in tattered white shorts was at the very front, leading a group of hopping zombies. When the old man hopped, the zombies behind him collectively hopped. When the old man stumbled upon landing, the zombies behind him also stumbled collectively. Fat Chef was so terrified by the sight that his face instantly drained of color, becoming as white as paper. At that exact moment, the slowest zombie at the back of the line stumbled and fell. Its face turned, looking behind it, and spotted Fat Chef standing there. The zombie seemed to have spotted something new and hopped directly towards Fat Chef. Fat Chef immediately bolted, and the zombie gave chase.

“Whoosh!”

Fat Chef reappeared by the bed, back in the bedroom. He reached up and touched his face, feeling the thick, pasty makeup. He was so terrified that his makeup had come off.

“Thump!”

The floor suddenly shuddered. It felt as though a colossal object had just landed.

“Come, little child. They’ve gone to call everyone, so let’s start eating.” The Cat-Faced Old Woman reached out, grabbed a handful of dried fruit, and placed it in front of Li Zhuiyuan.

Li Zhuiyuan’s face showed discomfort. He had tried this food before; it was difficult enough just to put it in his mouth, let alone eat it.

“Eat…” The old woman’s tone dropped, becoming heavy.

Li Zhuiyuan could only pick up one, swallowed hard, and put it into his mouth. Immediately, a powerful wave of nausea washed over him, but seeing the old woman’s expression, he could only cover his mouth to prevent himself from spitting it out.

“Hmm, that’s right, little child, that’s how it should be. You must always cherish food. Grandma, in this life, I starved before liberation, and as a widow raising three children after liberation, I starved even more. Then, my children grew up and starved to death. So, Grandma truly understands the preciousness of food.”

Li Zhuiyuan could only nod, forcing himself to endure the nausea, but he simply couldn’t swallow the mouthful of food.

Just then, Fat Chef tumbled down the stairs in utter panic, shouting loudly: “Old mistress, this is bad! Old mistress, something terrible has happened!”

“What is it?” The Cat-Faced Old Woman stood up. This was her “territory,” and she was its master.

“Thud!”

A pair of long boots descended, landing squarely on Fat Chef, crushing him instantly into a heap of scrap paper and wooden sticks.

“Ah…” A sinister, guttural sound echoed throughout the banquet hall, causing the temperature to plummet.

Li Zhuiyuan looked up, his face filled with shock, at the entity that had suddenly appeared before him. It was a zombie wearing a Qing Dynasty official’s robe and a peacock feather hat!