Chapter 128: The Truth of the Matter

"Hmph! You insolent brat, I am warning you once more: do not push me too far! Beware the retribution that will surely follow!" The female teacher’s anger was palpable, but Song Nianqiang only smiled even more brilliantly. "Hahaha..." A burst of laughter escaped his lips, leaving the village head and the young men present completely bewildered as to the meaning of his mirth.

"Retribution? You have the audacity to speak of retribution! It is shameful enough that I feel embarrassed on your behalf!" Song Nianqiang suddenly stood up, pointed a finger at the teacher’s nose, and unleashed a torrent of abuse. His vulgarities flowed in a relentless stream, leaving the teacher unable to get a word in edgewise.

Once he had finished his tirade, Song Nianqiang returned to his chair and leaned back with a sigh. "Now, let me introduce you to some familiar faces. I’m sure you’ll be delighted to see them." He clapped his hands, and from the spot where he had shattered the ancestral tablet, two wisps of grey smoke rose, rapidly coalescing into the figures of an old man and a middle-aged man.

"Father! Brother!"

The female teacher’s younger sister could not help but cry out at the sight of them—though "apparitions" might have been a more fitting term. "What is happening here?!" she screamed hysterically. Her mind had been completely shattered by the sight; she could no longer comprehend the reality before her.

"Hehe, don't be hasty. Let me explain it to you in detail." Song Nianqiang walked over to her and helped her into a chair, fearing she might lose control entirely.

"The body the police found was indeed your father's; that is true. As for who set the fire, I think your father is the best person to ask!" With that, Song Nianqiang performed a hand seal, lifting the binding on the two spirits.

"You heartless old hag! To think that you wouldn't even spare your own flesh and blood. Is the temptation of life truly so great?!" The elderly spirit was furious, though his soul energy was weak. Had Song Nianqiang not used Maoshan techniques to bind them, they would have long since dissipated into nothingness.

"To think you two haven't completely faded away yet—that was my oversight." The female teacher’s expression remained indifferent, as if discussing something mundane.

"Father! What is going on? Why are you speaking to my sister like that?" The younger sister, still lost, asked the question in her confusion.

"Little sister, she is no longer your sister. Your real sister’s soul was long ago scattered to the winds. What you see now is merely her vessel, inhabited by our own mother—a wicked, vicious woman who killed her own husband, son, and daughter!" The middle-aged man, silent until now, finally exploded. He pointed at the teacher and shouted, "You cold-blooded woman!"

"How... how is this possible?" The sister could not believe it, but the woman she had always respected slowly nodded at her. "Child, your brother is right. I am indeed your mother."

To have a woman who looked exactly like one’s own sister claim to be one’s mother was a bizarre nightmare. The younger sister felt a mix of hysterical laughter and the urge to end it all.

"You are my mother! I believe you, do you believe that? Do they believe it?!" She lunged up, overturning the table, and glared into the teacher’s face. "You are my mother! You are my mother! No! You are my sister! Wait! No! You are my mother! Hehe! You are my mother! I am your mother! Right! I am your mother!"

Seeing she had reached her breaking point, Song Nianqiang stepped forward and struck the back of her neck with a swift chop, causing her to lose consciousness.

"Now, would you mind telling us what this is all about?" The village head, being a man of experience, along with the young men who were eager for a sensation, hung on every word.

"Very well, I will explain the whole story. No interruptions." Song Nianqiang performed another seal to reseal the father and son, fearing their souls would dissipate before the netherworld envoys arrived.

"It began decades ago. The Hou woman was not just a mother and wife; she was a medium—someone capable of communicating between the living and the dead. Her husband knew this and, remarkably, did not oppose it; in fact, he cherished her all the more." Song Nianqiang glanced at the teacher, whose body was occupied by the spirit of the Hou woman.

Her expression remained unchanged. Song Nianqiang was not surprised; a woman this ruthless would not be moved by a few words. He continued.

"But good times don't last. When their third daughter was two and a half, a bizarre event occurred: an entity from hell intruded upon their lives. To save her family, she chose to perish alongside the entity. But in her final moments, she grew obsessed with the world's vanity. She didn't want to die. So, she planted a 'ghost-curse' on her husband—a peculiar, parasitic curse."

"From then on, her husband’s temperament shifted. He grew delirious, often seeing her in the ancestral tablet and cursing her. Eventually, she lost patience. She sought to use the life force of the living to anchor her spirit and return. When her son returned home, she saw her chance."

"She stripped her husband and son of their lives, possessing the body of her son. But she felt wrong as a man, so she orchestrated a plan to lure her daughters here. It worked. Both daughters arrived. The eldest, however, was a teacher whose inherent sense of righteousness formed a protective barrier, so she settled for the younger one."

"Yet, fate seemed to favor her. Forced out of the younger sister by me, she accidentally occupied the elder's body, successfully purging the original soul. She became a young, beautiful teacher. Unfortunately for her, I caught her."

Song Nianqiang took a breath. "Village head, do you understand now?" The village head nodded blankly, still struggling to process the impossible truth.

"Hou woman, do you have anything to say? If not, I am sealing these two poor souls away for the envoys to collect. I suggest you speak now while you can." Song Nianqiang stood and walked toward the spirits.

"Hmph! What is there to say? You think you can hold me? What a delusion!" The teacher stood, her demeanor shifting violently. Black smoke began to curl around her, and the temperature in the room plummeted.