Lifespan
The moment the courtyard gate was pushed open, a biting wind howled from within, followed by a broom hurling through the crack and landing outside the threshold. Old Madam Zhao’s fierce voice rang out from inside: “Lao’er, if you don’t bring your wife back today, don’t even think about stepping through this door again!”
Immediately after, Zheng Que saw a cowering figure being driven out in a rather disheveled state.
The figure wore a faded blue short jacket, head bowed, and quickly stepped over the threshold. It was Zhao Lao’er.
The two met in the narrow alley. Zheng Que nodded at Zhao Lao’er in greeting, but Zhao Lao’er’s gaze was vacant, his expression distant and distracted. He seemed completely unaware of Zheng Que, walking past him in a daze with unsteady steps.
Watching the other man’s retreating figure, Zheng Que shook his head slightly. He had his own troubles to deal with: the Calling Ghost remained unresolved, and he had no mind to meddle in others’ affairs.
Lost in thought, Zheng Que quickened his pace toward his own dwelling.
Soon he opened the door, entered and closed it behind him, swiftly scanning the surroundings.
The room was in complete disarray, furniture and objects overturned and scattered across the floor, leaving almost no space to step. Just as chaotic as when he had left in the morning.
He kicked aside some obstructive items and tidied up a bit, but had no patience for thorough cleaning. After hastily eating some stored dry rations he immediately entered the inner chamber and approached the bed.
As before, he first placed his shoes one facing forward and the other backward. Only then did Zheng Que sit cross-legged on the bed and begin cultivating.
As his mind sank into the circulation of the cultivation method, he once again entered that state of formless chaos. From all directions streams of icy currents filled the space, drifting like dandelions dancing in the wind, wandering freely.
Zheng Que continuously intercepted wisps of Spiritual Qi wrapped in Yin Qi, drawing them into his body and refining them into his Qi Sea.
Time passed slowly. The more Spiritual Qi and Yin Qi he absorbed, the heavier the chill on his body became. His temperature dropped rapidly and his complexion gradually turned pale and bloodless.
After cultivating like this for half an hour, Zheng Que suddenly sensed something and abruptly opened his eyes.
He now found himself sitting on that three-legged armchair, surrounded by crumbling walls and broken pillars that roughly outlined the vast hall. Through the gaps he could hear the mournful howling of yin wind from outside, eerie and chilling. Before him stood a mottled long table, upon which lay the ancient Book of Life and Death.
Gazing at this dilapidated hall, Zheng Que’s expression remained unchanged. He vaguely understood that as long as he absorbed enough Yin Qi, he could enter this place.
In the past, before he had entered the Dao, the reason he occasionally dreamed of this place was likely because he had been tainted by Yin Qi in reality.
Just as he was thinking this, wisps of smoke-like black Qi surged from between his brows, then swiftly vanished into the Book of Life and Death before him.
Zheng Que snapped back to attention, wasting no more time. He immediately reached out and grasped for the Book of Life and Death.
The moment his fingertips touched the cover, an overwhelming wave of coldness assaulted him. In an instant a dense, almost tangible sense of death, mingled with vast unknowns and terror, surged forth like a toppled celestial river, crashing down and nearly drowning him completely!
Zheng Que’s mind was profoundly shaken. In the depths of his consciousness the ancient, worn-out booklet before him seemed to transform into a deep, bottomless black abyss: solemn, weighty, and chilling, like the ultimate destination of all living beings. It conveyed an infinite sense of death and stillness, as if it could devour all things in the universe.
With just a fleeting glance, Zheng Que nearly lost his composure. He quickly withdrew his hand, and in that brief moment he was drenched in cold sweat, his chest heaving violently as he gasped for breath.
After steadying himself, he looked again at the Book of Life and Death. The yellowed booklet lay quietly on the table, seemingly unremarkable.
But Zheng Que’s expression had already turned extremely grave.
The Book of Life and Death.
With his current level of cultivation, he couldn’t even bear to touch its cover.
At this moment Zheng Que noticed that the Yin Qi emerging from between his brows was gradually diminishing. He immediately understood that he wouldn’t be able to stay in this dilapidated hall much longer.
Thinking of this, he took a deep breath and reached out once more, grasping toward the cover of the Book of Life and Death.
The moment his fingers touched it, that overwhelming sense of annihilation and utter despair surged over him again like a tidal wave, threatening to completely obliterate him. In that instant Zheng Que felt like a small boat adrift on a vast ocean, facing towering waves.
Death howled as it rushed toward him. Clenching his teeth, Zheng Que did not let go this time. Instead he mustered all his strength and desperately tried to flip open the cover.
In the next moment almost all thoughts in his mind came to a halt, leaving only endless death and despair.
In a daze, unsure of how much time had passed, Zheng Que gradually regained consciousness. The Yin Qi flowing from between his brows had grown extremely faint, and the Book of Life and Death before him had been opened just a corner.
Beneath that corner, similarly yellowed paper was revealed, covered in rows of peculiar characters. The strokes were ancient and weathered, resembling insects or birds: something he had never seen before.
Yet strangely, Zheng Que could fully understand the meaning of those words:
Category: Human Race.
Name: Zheng Que.
Origin: Resident of Town of Lasting Fortune, Great Peace County, Marsh Province, Great Li Dynasty.
Lifespan: Sixteen years, seven months, and three days. Died at the hour of Hai.
This…
Zheng Que was instantly startled. This was his name!
The origin matched perfectly as well.
However, he was exactly sixteen years old this year.
To be precise, from his birth in this life until now, it had been exactly sixteen years, seven months, and three days.
Did this mean he would only live until the hour of Hai tonight?
Thinking this, Zheng Que reached out again and grasped the corner of the Book of Life and Death that had been lifted.
This time, when his fingers touched it, aside from a piercing coldness he no longer felt the overwhelming rush of death and despair that had come before.
He immediately exerted force and fully opened the lifted page.
A sheet of yellowed paper appeared before him.
The writing on the paper was clear and orderly, but it contained only Zheng Que’s own record. The rest of the page was completely blank.
At that very moment the last trace of black Qi between his brows vanished into the Book of Life and Death. The surrounding scene twisted and trembled, all colors rapidly fading into a kaleidoscope of light. In the blink of an eye he was back in his own room.
Outside the window, daylight had long since vanished. Dusk had fallen, and under the heavy dark curtain of night the faint starlight outlined the hazy silhouettes of distant houses and nearby trees. The entire town was eerily silent.
Creak!
At that moment the locked door was suddenly pushed open by something.
A familiar voice immediately reached Zheng Que’s ears: “Disciple, your master did not eat his fill last night!”
[1] - The “Hai Hour” in the traditional Chinese system refers to the two-hour period from 9:00 PM to 11:00 PM
The hour of Zi = 11:00 PM – 1:00 AM
The hour of Chou = 1:00 AM – 3:00 AM
The hour of Yin = 3:00 AM – 5:00 AM
The hour of Mao = 5:00 AM – 7:00 AM
The hour of Chen = 7:00 AM – 9:00 AM
The hour of Si = 9:00 AM – 11:00 AM
The hour of Wu = 11:00 AM – 1:00 PM
The hour of Wei = 1:00 PM – 3:00 PM
The hour of Shen = 3:00 PM – 5:00 PM
The hour of You = 5:00 PM – 7:00 PM
The hour of Xu = 7:00 PM – 9:00 PM
The hour of Hai = 9:00 PM – 11:00 PM