Chapter Ninety-Five: The Pagoda Tree in the Courtyard

The house wasn’t far from the bar; before long, we arrived at its main gate. It was already late at night, and the elderly lady who usually sat at the street corner had long since disappeared.

Lisa pulled an old-fashioned key from her designer handbag and deftly unlocked the gate.

With a creak, the door swung open, revealing a vast courtyard stretching before us. The courtyard was decorated in an antiquated style, featuring an ancient well and several vines twisting around bamboo trellises. However, the plants appeared long neglected, wildly overgrown.

A few stone benches were scattered haphazardly about the yard, one even toppled over. Along the walls, patches of farmland lay fallow, overrun with weeds from disuse.

Despite Lisa’s delicate and refined appearance, her living environment was decidedly makeshift.

The most striking feature was an enormous ancient tree dominating the yard—a massive locust tree, its dense branches sprawling wildly, blotting out the sky and almost completely obscuring the view.

Lisa and I stepped into the courtyard, just starting to venture deeper when Old Liao, standing behind me, whispered cautiously, “Be careful, something’s off.”

Indeed, from the moment we entered, an eerie, unsettling atmosphere hung in the air, making my skin crawl.

Lisa clearly heard the whisper and turned to see me tilting my head, conversing quietly with Old Liao. A flicker of displeasure crossed her lovely face. “What’s the matter, handsome? Can’t we have some privacy? Or do you want the three of us together?” Her tone was sultry but edged with anger, putting me in an awkward spot.

Old Liao quickly tried to smooth things over, bowing and saying, “Miss, don’t misunderstand. I’m just Zhang’s driver. Just arrange a place for me to rest tonight; everything else is up to you two. Whatever you want, heh heh.” He shot me a lecherous sideways glance while speaking.

Before I could react, Lisa had already hooked her arm around mine. I felt the soft touch of her skin and involuntarily shivered. She whispered playfully, “Oh, handsome, you even have a driver? Can’t drive yourself? Well... tonight, your little sister will teach you. My driving skills are top-notch.”

Her words sent a cold sweat down my spine. This wasn’t just a college girl—she was more like a temptress.

“Uh, let’s go inside and talk,” I quickly diverted the topic. The atmosphere was too strange, and with Old Liao’s warning, it seemed safer to talk indoors.

Lisa strutted ahead, leading the way, while Old Liao and I whispered behind her. “Old Liao, what’s going on?”

Old Liao’s face was troubled. “I don’t know if it’s my old eyes playing tricks, but just now... I saw... that tree... move.”

“Move?!” I knew well that such signs always meant something supernatural was afoot.

“Yes, really moved!”

“Old Liao, bring out those talismans from your bag.”

Through all the ordeals, Old Liao had managed to reclaim some of his old magical tools from pawnshops and antique stalls. In our line of work, such implements were indispensable.

I produced an ancient bronze mirror, which Old Liao had once stumbled upon in an antique shop. It bore a striking resemblance to one from the haunted Longling mansion. When I showed it to Hu Ji, he confirmed it was a consecrated object — not only could it repel demons and evil, but it could also reveal spirits.

I pressed hard on my middle finger until it bled, letting a drop of blood fall onto the mirror. Perhaps influenced by the peculiar destiny of the Nine Yin Convergence, my blood seemed more potent than Old Liao’s.

The mirror trembled faintly upon contact with the blood. I lifted it, angling it toward the locust tree retreating into the distance.

The blood slowly spread across the mirror’s surface... and strange images began to appear.

Beneath the ghost tree stood a woman in white. Her face was deathly pale, her pupils hollow black, her gaze fixed upward on the tree’s branches. Then another woman appeared.

And another.

And yet another.

Soon, the entire area beneath the locust tree was packed with white-clad female ghosts. At the forefront, one turned sharply, her pale face fixed on me. She whispered a few words: “Scholarly wooden coffin.”

“What’s a ‘scholarly wooden coffin’?” I asked Old Liao.

“That should be ‘tree-born wooden ghost’... The locust tree’s name breaks down into ‘wood’ and ‘ghost.’ In ancient times, the four major ghost-summoning trees were mulberry, locust, poplar, and willow. ‘No mulberry planted in front, no willow planted behind, no ghostly clapping in the yard.’ Mulberry sounds like ‘mourning’—planting it in front of a house signifies death ahead. Willow sounds like ‘slip away’—planting it behind leads to wealth slipping away. Another belief holds that willows don’t bear seeds; planting one behind a house means no descendants. Poplar leaves rustle in the wind, known as ‘ghost clapping.’ And locust? Locust means ‘wooden ghost.’ No locust trees behind the house.”

I quickly composed myself. “Could the ghost stories Mr. Li mentioned be related to this tree? Such a massive tree must have witnessed countless fools hanging themselves from its branches. It’s probably crawling with spirits. We’d better keep our distance.”

Old Liao nodded. We hurried to catch up with Lisa. Just as we stepped into the main hall, I glanced again through the mirror. All the ghosts had vanished.

But then I noticed the tree’s bark pattern forming a human face.

That face grinned at me with a sinister, eerie laugh that sent chills down my spine.

This tree was definitely cursed.

Lisa slammed the hall door shut, ignoring Old Liao’s gaze. She grabbed my arm and pulled me onto the sofa, straddling my lap. Her fiery red lips brushed close to my ear as she whispered, “Master Zhang, the night is short and sweet. Why not experience your little sister’s driving skills?”

Old Liao, sensing the awkwardness, muttered, “You two carry on; I’ll sleep in the guest room,” then opened the door to leave.

Lisa waved him off impatiently.

I grew anxious. This woman was already mysterious enough, and with that haunted tree outside, this was playing with fire.

“Miss Lisa, I want to ask you—have you encountered any strange occurrences recently?” I had to break the mood. If this continued, I wasn’t sure I could keep control.

Lisa suddenly fell silent, rising from me to sit in a nearby chair, her spirit seemingly broken. She lowered her head and asked softly, “Who sent you here?”