Night Parade of a Hundred Ghosts - Chapter 6

You could say today was a case of “misfortune never comes alone.” As soon as I got home, I almost got killed by the ghost in my house, and now it feels like I’m lost in some ghostly haze. Seriously, just my luck!

But I’m not too freaked out. I’ve been seeing ghosts since I was a kid, so I don’t get as scared as regular folks do, especially since I’ve got a talisman on me. What’s there to fear?

Plus, ghost path like this are pretty weak compared to the terrifying statue at my place. I mean, this kind of trick can be broken with boy’s urine, so what’s there to worry about?

Right now, I’m honestly relieved I’ve kept my “innocence.” Every time I saw those rich, handsome guys at school sneaking in and out of hotels with pretty girls, I felt that envy, jealousy, and a little bitterness. But now I wonder, what would those rich guys do if they ran into a ghost like this? Ha, serve them right for not being “innocent.”

Maybe this is what they call a “single guy mentality.” Eighteen years single, and I haven’t even held a girl’s hand…except for my mom’s, of course. Just as I was getting ready to, uh, “take out my little bro” and spray this ghost out of my way, I suddenly heard a sound behind me. Turning around, I froze.

Right in front of me, only about a meter away, was a figure squatting with their back toward me. Judging from the outline, it seemed like a girl, dressed in a tight red outfit. I couldn’t see what she was up to, but my heart skipped a beat…red clothes? Isn’t that what they say vengeful spirits wear?

Feeling a little spooked, I pulled out “little bro” and yelled, “Hey! Are you human or ghost? Show yourself, or my ‘second brother’ will handle this!”

At that moment, I was convinced she was a ghost. But when she heard me, she turned around, and damn, it was actually a beautiful ghost. A really gorgeous one! Such a shame, though… looked like she died young. Judging by her figure, probably a B-cup, but not bad. What a pity.

Just as I was drifting off, mentally preparing myself to spray her in the face, I felt a sharp pain in my “second brother.” This beauty had kicked me!

“Pervert!” She looked more shocked than I was, standing up and smacking me across the face. That girl was freakishly strong, she slapped me so hard my teeth felt loose. As I regained my senses, I saw her glaring at me furiously.

Damn, this ghost’s tough. I took a couple of steps back, eyeing her warily, and asked, “What kind of ghost are you, able to actually slap people?”

Generally speaking, only fierce, vengeful spirits can harm people directly. Ghosts don’t have physical bodies, so they usually rely on illusions to make you harm yourself. Say you’re on the tenth floor; a ghost could make you think the window is a doorway, scaring you into running and leaping out. This is a common ghost tactic. So, if you ever run into a ghost, unless it’s a vengeful spirit in red, try not to panic. Just close your eyes, recite a Buddhist mantra, or calm down no matter what you see.

Of course, I’m talking about ordinary ghosts here. A bit stronger ones might possess you and make you jump off a building. If you encounter one of those, well, good luck.

Anyway, back to my story. My heart was pounding, and I wasn’t a fool. There were only two possible explanations here: either this girl was a fierce ghost in red, or she was a real person.

Oh man, I actually hoped she was a fierce ghost. Otherwise, if she was just a pretty girl out here at night, and I pulled out my “little bro” like that—my reputation would be ruined!

Soon enough, I got my answer when Brother Xiang’s voice echoed from the alley entrance.

“Aiyo, you little punk! Where did you go? I’ve been looking for you everywhere, though you’d gotten lost.” Brother Xiang strolled in, but as soon as he saw the girl glaring at me and my, uh, spray-ready stance, he froze and said, “Chen Hui? Eh… ah, wrong place. You two carry on.” He looked ready to leave in a hurry.

“Li Xuxiang! You know this jerk? I’ll kill you!” The girl shouted, charging at Brother Xiang. She was fierce, taking him down with a single kick as he yelped, “You little punk, he was the one being a creep, not me! Ouch, stop hitting me!”

Watching this brutal scene unfold, a chill ran down my spine, especially “down there.” I quickly zipped up my pants, hiding my “bro,” and stood aside as the girl unleashed her fury on Brother Xiang, cursing him with each blow, “I’ll beat you to death, you jerk! Even your friends are perverts!”

Brother Xiang, getting pummeled, managed to curse back at me, “Chen Hui, you jerk! Just wait till she’s done. I’ll deal with you next!”

I was kind of hoping she’d keep hitting him a bit longer. Otherwise, once Brother Xiang recovered, I’d be the next target. But as entertaining as this was, I suddenly felt a chill down my back. The alley had ghosts, remember?

I felt an icy sensation spreading across my body, like I was wrapped in blocks of ice. I realized I couldn’t move. No, wait—my body was moving on its own, slowly walking toward Brother Xiang and the girl. I wasn’t in control!

I was possessed!

What kind of spirit could possess me? It couldn’t be any regular ghost. I wanted to shout for Brother Xiang and the girl to run, but I couldn’t make a sound.

Both of them still had their backs turned to me, unaware of my strange behavior. As I got within a meter of them, the girl suddenly turned around, holding a talisman in her hand. “Hah, just a plain evil spirit? Daring to mess with me?”

She slapped the talisman onto my chest, hitting me with enough force to knock me back, though I didn’t feel any pain. My hand raised, holding the black dog’s blood bottle, and I swung it right at Brother Xiang’s head. Was this ghost only out to hurt men?

Brother Xiang, who’d just been beaten to the ground and was trying to get up, got hit again with a loud “thunk,” and he dropped back down. But this bottle was full of black dog’s blood! The bottle broke, splashing the stuff all over my hand.

Suddenly, a woman’s scream echoed from my mouth—a scream so shrill, it sounded like a thirty-something woman in utter agony.