When the old innkeeper had mentioned that the mountain caves were a mess of winding halls, he had been right. As Wu Mi guided Shu Zhijing through the halls with practiced ease, Shu Zhijing began to worry whether or not he'd be able to find his way out again. He had little trouble until they entered a larger chamber, which seemed to occur every now and again, but this chamber was round and tall, nearly vaulted.
There were shambling skeletons meandering around the area, grunting and groaning every now and again, and their flesh was left to rot on the floor beside them. The flesh had no smell, there was nothing putrid about this place, in fact, the longer Shu Zhijing was inside the caverns, the more he realised that the deeper he went, the older it got. There had been corpses in the beginning of cultivators that had tried to get inside, but the newest corpses were closest to the front, as the protectors started to understand how to better protect the territory from intruders. If the skeletons were once corpses, and all their flesh had rotted off, then whoever made them either used a lot of power to keep them alive and then died so they lingered, or was also still alive. The latter seemed impossible, because of how long it would have taken for the corpses to have rotted fully, hundreds of years.
Wu Mi pats the skeletons away, and they don't bother them. Wu Mi treats them like pets, even patting one of the skulls with a little hum before he throws a sad smile over his shoulder for Shu Zhijing. They entered another hallway through the back of the chamber, and there were more hallways that led from that point.
"Those are libraries and studies," Wu Mi said. "My love was a scholar and an innovator." The sheer pride that filled Wu Mi's tone made Shu Zhijing feel a wave of horrible sadness. To be left for so long, and yet still love so fully. It was so sad, and yet Wu Mi would never understand how sad it was, because ghosts couldn't feel time like humans, every day felt like forever, and that made Shu Zhijing feel worse.
As Wu Mi pushed open heavy curtains that had since rotted and become tattered with holes, he revealed a large bedroom carved into the mountain. There was a large raised stone bed with a mat that had been preserved, and a blanket that had been mostly eaten by bugs and whatnot, but it had once been blood red, much like the drapes over the entryway. There was a shrine at the side of the room, one with a drawing of Wu Mi on it, and a small doll carved from wood. That was what kept Wu Mi tethered.
That wasn't all the room had, however, because there were books and scrolls lying around in a mess, like it had been frantically searched through and haphazardly put away.
"I did that," Wu Mi said. "He was neat, but when I couldn't find him, I wanted to see if there was something I could do. I didn't find anything."
"I'm sorry," Shu Zhijing said. Wu Mi nodded before he sat on the edge of the bed. Shu Zhijing touched the wooden doll and found the red string that tied dark brown hair to the back of it. There was blood on the top. It was definitely a creation to keep him tethered, and the seal carved into the bottom was the main confirmation. "Do you… do you want to rest?"
"If Liu Tuzhe hasn't found me by now, then… Yes, I'd like that."
"Would you lead me out of the cave first?" Shu Zhijing asked, and Wu Mi nodded. They came out the way they came, through tons of twists and turns. He could imagine how easy it would be to be lost and die of exposure to the elements or starvation inside. He wondered if that's what took out the dead cultivators lining the walls, or if that had been the skeletons and ghosts that dwelled inside. He could hear their screaming as he left with Wu Mi. The ghost himself held his hands in front of his waist with a look of giddy patience.
"What should I call you?" Wu Mi asked.
"You can call me Shu Jingxin," he said.
"Well, Jingxin-gonzi, thank you for helping me, and for not trying to steal my Tuzhe's scrolls."
"Stealing is a sin," Shu Zhijing said before he nodded to Wu Mi, and set the wooden carving on fire with a talisman. He set it on the ground and watched as it burned. It was reduced to ash. Instead of banishing a spirit that wanted to stay, it would be easier now that Wu Mi was at peace. It was not a part of his normal repertoire to put a ghost to rest, but he was capable, and it took a few notes whistled with a bit of awkwardness for the ghostly image of Wu Mi to slowly fade until he was gone.
Once Wu Mi had been put to rest, the wailing inside the mountain seemed to grow silent for a moment, and when the horrendous ruckus from inside didn't return, Shu Zhijing returned to the village. He entered the inn, saw the old man waiting for him. They nodded at one another, before Shu Zhijing headed up the stairs and to his room for the night. He set his sword to the side, and slept.
Somehow, despite giving Wu Mi what he wanted, what he probably needed after so long, he felt wrong. He felt like he was missing someone, and he strived to not hurt people. He was a helper, he cultivated to make the world a safer place, he cultivated to prove his righteousness by walking a proper path. For some reason, it just felt like he hadn't done it this time, and it left him feeling almost like he was in the wrong skin.
The next evening, however, when Shu Zhijing woke up and went to the old man below the stairs, he was met with a dozen stern faces.
"What have you done?" one of the older women asked, her voice full of accusation, although Shu Zhijing didn't know what exactly she was accusing him of doing. "That spirit boy kept the others from running amok. He was the leader of the ghosts. You've doomed us all, but I guess that doesn't matter since you can pack up your sword and just leave us with the problems."
"I…" he started, but he had no way to explain himself. He bowed then, and the people looked up at him with shock, like they hadn't expected his apology. "Forgive me. I didn't know. I will remain here until this problem is over. I hope you will allow me to help even after the trouble I've caused you."
"Well," the woman said with a gruff huff, "I suppose if you aren't just going to abandon us to the monsters, you're fine. Youzhou here--" the innkeeper gave him a bow at the sound of his name-- "Will let you stay here as long as you keep the spirits, skeletons, and corpses from breaking our things or killing us."
"I will help," he promised. The first step would be to protect their houses, keeping anyone inside safe. "Thank you for allowing me to stay."
The woman just huffed, but the innkeeper, Youzhou, nodded at him with an old but unwavering smile full of optimism that only the very young and the very old could have. The man started to shoo away the other people, however he did so more politely than it sounded, with kind words and compassionate excuses. Once the people were gone, he walked towards Shu Zhijing.
"Come, we'll eat lunch together, since you slept so heavily," the man said. Despite having been awake for quite some time, Shu Zhijing had yet to realise it was after midday. Nearly wei shi, he thought after peering at the window to get a glimpse of the sun. It was hazened by a sudden darkness that had crept over the town. While he had felt energy the previous night, lost and pleading for help, there was some more restlessness and maliciousness that seemed to have dispersed while he had been sleeping.
Youzhou sat with him as they ate a meal together quietly. The proprietor seemed to have nothing to say, and Shu Zhijing had never been the best conversationalist when compared to others his age. He had made a mistake, in a way, but he had helped Wu Mi the previous night, and he would now help these people. The first thing he needed to do was put up protection talismans over their doors, and figure out why spirits were drawn to Beiling and the Death Hall Mountain.