Because the sins of our ancestors ran so deep, only I, the guardian of the village, could call the names and carry the coffins to drive away the restless dead.
Give the departed a chance at rebirth, and their descendants a chance to live.
After the last old woman in the village died, I lit a stick of soul-calling incense as usual and prepared to recite the names and lift the coffin, but before I could enter, a woman and her bodyguards blocked me outside.
“Are you the so-called village guardian?”
“You fool, how dare you think you can step into my Lawson family? Get lost!”
I told them calmly that I had urgent duties tonight, but the woman before me only sneered. “Isn’t this just your excuse to freeload food and wine from my late great-grandmother?”
“Noah already invited a nun from overseas. She’ll send my great-grandmother on her final journey.”
“As for you, fool, you’ve been deceiving me for years. It’s time to leave Lawson Village!”
They tore away my clothes, shattered my instruments, and pushed me into a foul ditch to be “purified” by the nuns.
My eyes stayed fixed on the soul-calling incense burning in the censer.
When the last ember died out, I shook my head.
“I won’t step into your house.”
“Your whole family won’t live past this night.”
——
“My Lawson family is the wealthiest across the four provinces of Stonebridge! We have the best security systems, the finest doctors on call day and night!”
“How dare you, a fool, speak such nonsense?”
Vivian Lawson doubled over in laughter, while the delicate young man at her side burst into tears.
Her people mocked me, but I spoke each word with gravity. “Once the incense for guiding souls is broken, the path to deliverance is cut off. That is the rule.”
“Go back with me now, kneel before the City God, kowtow a hundred times, and beg for another stick of incense. Only then might your Lawson family have a chance.”
Vivian’s face grew more haughty than ever. She kicked my lower back hard with her sharp heel.
“Why don’t you ask around? Who in all four provinces—whether among the living or the dead—doesn’t call me Vivian?”
“Even the mountain where Buddha dwells was chosen by my Lawson Family! And you dare mention the City God? He’s not fit for me to bend my knee!”
“You want incense? I’ll smash them all right now!”
Vivian crushed the remaining sticks under her feet.
Seeing the fragments scattered beneath her heel, my heart sank.
Everyone here knew: every villager was a billionaire with assets beyond a hundred million yuan.
Yet they all treated me—the so-called fool—with respect. Not only was I given the finest food, clothing, and daily needs, but they even built me a grand villa on the village’s one auspicious feng shui site.
The reason was simple: the ancestors of Lawson Residence carried grave sins, stripping refugees of wealth.
Whenever someone here died, vengeful spirits crowded the village gates.
Only by chanting the name and carrying the coffin could the guardian soothe those spirits, granting the dead a chance at rebirth, and their descendants a chance at survival.
Three days ago, I learned of the Lawson Family matriarch’s passing. After bathing and burning incense in seclusion for three days, I arrived before midnight, carrying soul-calling incense to summon her name and raise her coffin. To my surprise, I was stopped by her great-granddaughter, Vivian.
She threatened to tear down my villa, replace it with a resort for her plaything, and drive me, the fool, from Lawson Residence.
But she didn’t realize: for someone like Mrs. Lawson, the vigil could not exceed three days.
Her name had to be called, her coffin lifted before midnight tonight. Less than half an hour remained.
“I’m not joking. While there’s still time, hurry and buy another stick of soul-calling incense!”
“Otherwise, none of the 108 members of your Lawson Family will live through this night!”
I spoke firmly, but Vivian struck me across the face.
“Courting death, are you? How dare you curse the Lawson Family?”
“Do you believe I won’t make sure you never see the sun again?”
Vivian raised her hand, ready to send me to the grave, but the man beside her stopped her.
“Miss, the old lady just passed. We shouldn’t stain the house with blood.”
“Besides, why bother dealing with a fool yourself? Let the nuns I invited baptize him. Maybe then he’ll stop spouting nonsense.”
Vivian’s fury softened a little. Standing on tiptoe, she kissed him on the cheek. “Noah is truly my darling. Even his words are so clever.”
“Then let’s do as you say. Let the nuns baptize her and drive away the foul air!”
Noah Cole reached for my clothes, but I stepped back at once.
“This is a vestment. Don’t touch it!”
He sneered, ignoring me.
“Vestment? It’s just rags stitched together.”
“You fool, I’m helping you.”
“Mother Teresa is a registered senior nun. She’ll surely cast out the evil in you and restore your senses.”
“You might even serve in the Lawson Family, wear proper uniforms, and enjoy fine meals. Isn’t that better than rotting away in this backwater?”
But I do not want to be a servant of the Lawson Family.
I am the village guardian. Only I can keep Lawson Residence safe.
If I leave, the entire village will fall!
I shoved Noah aside and tried to enter the Lawson residence.
Though I used little strength, he toppled down the stairs.
Vivian, alarmed, rushed to help him, glaring at me with eyes that burned to tear me apart.
“You wretch! You dare spurn my kindness?”
“Strip him!”
Several strong men rushed forward, forcing me to the ground.
I fought back, but they ripped away my clothes. My vestments and talismans were shredded into pieces.
I folded my arms across my chest to hide myself, yet Noah still caught sight of the pus-filled sores across my body and cried out in disgust. “What’s that? Revolting…”
“Charles Lawson, it’s said that fools in the countryside live wretchedly. They’ll even bed old women just to get a meal, and end up diseased with no cure.”
“Look at the boils all over him. Could he have caught something from those women?”
Vivian’s gaze fell on me.
One glance, and she vomited in revulsion.
“A rotten cucumber like you. Letting you near her would only disturb my great-grandmother’s spirit!”
“No need for baptism. Just drag him out and bury him!”
But I raised my voice. “This is the price I pay to send Lawson Residencers on!”
“They bear heavy sins. Without me calling the names and carrying the coffin, calamity will strike! Even their descendants will suffer!”
“Crows circle your roof—it’s the sign of spirits demanding revenge! I must call the names and carry the coffin before midnight to send Mrs. Lawson away!”
“It’s less than twenty minutes to midnight. Let me in—there’s still time!”
As soon as I finished, a murder of crows wheeled over the Lawson mansion, refusing to disperse.
Their shrill cries pierced the still night, and for the first time, a trace of hesitation flickered in Vivian’s eyes.
Noah tugged at her arm, speaking with disdain. “Isn’t it normal for crows to appear in the countryside? Stop falling for tricks!”
“Miss, you’ve studied abroad for years, receiving the best education. Do you still believe such absurd talk?”
“In my view, he should be buried, and Mother Teresa can exorcise the so-called evil from him. Then we’ll see if he dares spout nonsense again!”
Noah raised his hand, and at once someone shoved me toward a nearby pit.
I glanced down—the hole was as deep as a man’s height—and instantly realized Noah never intended exorcism. He meant to kill me!
My frown deepened, and I warned Vivian once more.
“You broke my soul-calling incense and destroyed my vestments. Those spirits are already stirring!”
“If you won’t let me in, then when midnight strikes, the Lawson Family will be buried alongside you for your ignorance!”
Noah rolled his eyes. “Ridiculous! Monsters don’t exist in this world.”
“Even if they did, the Lawson Family has Mother Teresa. I hired her to protect us. Nothing will happen!”
“You little fool, you’d better worry about yourself first!”
He shoved me into the pit, and soil was thrown over me immediately.
Unwilling to wait for death, I clawed at the earthen wall, trying to climb up.
But Noah had men guarding the edge. Each time I surfaced, a shovel cracked against my head.
Blood streamed down my forehead, dizziness threatening to overwhelm me.
Yet Vivian and her bodyguards only roared with laughter at my wretched state. “Miss, look—he’s just like a dog!”
“Why not keep him alive? Throw him in your amphitheater to fight wild beasts for entertainment. Wouldn’t that be amusing?”
Vivian kicked the man between the legs.
“Idiot! My imported beasts are priceless. Ten of him couldn’t match one of them.”
“And he reeks of disease. You want me to lock him with my precious creatures? Do you want them dead?”
“Yes, yes, of course! How could I forget? This fool deserves to die! Let’s bury him!”
The soil quickly rose against my chest.
I struggled to breathe, yet forced out words one by one.
“Vivian… you’ll pay for this folly!”
“With a descendant like you, the Lawson Family is bound for ruin!”
Vivian spat thick phlegm into my face. “Bastard! Still stubborn on the brink of death!”
“Looks like I’ve been far too merciful with you!”
Beside her, Noah’s eyes shifted slyly, and he offered a cruel idea.
“Miss, why not bring Black Tiger over?”
“He’s been training to hunt live prey recently.”
The moment he finished, they wheeled out a cage holding a Tibetan mastiff as massive as a tiger.
Catching the scent of blood from my head, it grew frantic, snarling and growling nonstop.
Vivian, delighted by its reaction, lifted her hand to signal its release.
But before she could, a powerful voice cut through the night.
“What are you doing!”
I looked up and saw the village chief appear at the Lawson Family gates.
His eyes fell on me—half-buried, my bloodied head exposed—and his whole body trembled with fury.
“You’re insane! How could you treat Lucas Lawson like this? He’s the village guardian! Dig him out at once!”
