Xu Meng and I exchanged perplexed glances, clueless about the term "corpse fetus" that Aizi Xing was talking about.
"Hey, Shorty, cut the nonsense. What's this about me being pregnant with a corpse fetus?" Xu Meng protested indignantly.
Aizi Xing didn't get angry but asked Xu Meng if she had experienced any nausea or cravings for blood lately.
Suddenly, Xu Meng fell silent. My heart skipped a beat. Could it be that he was right? Could Xu Meng actually be carrying a so-called corpse fetus?
Aizi Xing explained that the symptoms of carrying a corpse fetus were similar to a normal pregnancy, including bouts of nausea. However, with a regular fetus, you crave sour foods, while with a corpse fetus, you crave blood. He had taken Xu Meng's pulse and it showed signs of pregnancy, but her joyful pulse had abnormalities.
The joyful pulse refers to the slippery pulse, which in pulse diagnosis, is described as "in a woman without phlegm, it means pregnancy." The pulse feels as if pearls were rolling under the fingertips. It's like pearls dropping onto a dish.
Xu Meng's pulse, however, felt very different – rigid and prickly, as if there were thorns during the pulse reading, which clearly indicated it wasn't a normal fetus but... a corpse fetus! And if Xu Meng exhibited symptoms of nausea and blood cravings, then it was almost certain.
A human being pregnant with a corpse fetus was a thought too terrifying and absurd. Aizi Xing seemed to have some real skills; just a touch of the hand and he could determine the presence of a pregnancy, and differentiate between a human fetus and a corpse fetus.
Finally speaking up, Xu Meng admitted she didn't understand why this was happening and certainly didn't know anything about a corpse fetus. At first, she thought it was just because she had drunk too much since she often had to drink with clients, which led to vomiting. But the nausea persisted even without alcohol, and she frequently had a desire to drink blood.
What could have caused this? Could the ghost that was haunting Xu Meng be playing tricks? That didn't make sense because I just tattooed her with the "Ghost Begging Yaksha" tattoo, which was supposed to be effective for Wang Xin, so it should work for Xu Meng too.
Xu Meng felt it wasn't the ghost's fault because the tattoo did work.
Before, Xu Meng always sensed something following her that she couldn't see or detect, but after getting the yaksha tattoo, she could feel where the ghost was, and often a shadowy figure holding a stave would appear, vanishing the sensation of the ghost immediately.
"That's good. It means Ghost Begging Yaksha scared off the ghost. Yakshas eat ghosts, so of course, it would run," I breathed a sigh of relief. As long as it wasn't an issue with my tattoo, I was okay. I was worried it was ineffective!
But then Xu Meng shook her head, indicating the ghost hadn't left.
She felt the ghost no longer dared to approach her, but it still watched her from a distance, and the sensation was very distinct.
No way? This… what's going on? Has that ghost really taken a liking to Xu Meng? Even if it dares not come close, it still wants to watch from afar.
Aizi Xing had no idea what we were talking about and looked utterly lost, so I had to spell out Xu Meng's situation to him.
After hearing the full story, Aizi Xing slapped his thigh and exclaimed that we got everything wrong.
Firstly, the ghost wasn't trying to kill Xu Meng but wanted to use her womb to give birth to its corpse fetus and resurrect. If it really intended to kill her, it could have done so during possession without this complicated setup.
Secondly, the ghost wasn't leaving not because it wanted to kill Xu Meng, but to see its child. Once the corpse fetus was born, it would leave. That's why the yaksha couldn't drive it away – it also wanted to watch from afar.
Thirdly, the lingering hostility on Xu Meng wasn't an intentional trace left by the corpse to kill her but resentfulness from the possessor who didn't get to finish its business with Xu Meng due to time running out.
But this was incredibly lucky – to think Xu Meng could get pregnant like this, isn't that a mistake?
Aizi Xing's explanation seemed far-fetched. How could a dead body impregnate someone? Moreover, the job was only half done. And who would be so idle as to possess a body to create a corpse fetus?
Also, wasn't it Xu Meng's nemesis, Chen Xiaomei, who arranged to harm her? How did it turn into this corpse fetus situation? If not as she claimed, then why would she lie so persistently, even risking her life?
This was becoming increasingly intricate and confusing.
Aizi Xing admitted he didn't know. He might see through the supernatural, but human motivations were beyond him. Who knew why someone would bother with this, or what grievances might be between Xu Meng and others?
Xu Meng, increasingly frightened, was close to tears. To have a living person like her pregnant with a corpse fetus would unsettle anyone.
She asked Aizi Xing if one could abort a so-called corpse fetus and whether it would turn out to be human or zombie.
Aizi Xing claimed that if one could raise the corpse fetus well, it could grow up to be more human-like, though with distinct qualities and an unusual vitality. If not raised properly, it could become a living zombie. Abortion was possible but would significantly harm the mother and leave a residue of corpse energy, leading to chronic weakness and illness.
This suggested that the corpse fetus had a chance to become human – albeit with great risk and the unfortunate reality of having a deceased father. Who would willingly carry such a child?
I had another question: since the corpse fetus resulted from possession, and the corpse and ghost weren't the same entity, then whose child was it?
Aizi Xing snickered, his demeanor somewhat sleazy. He claimed that only the King of Hell could decide such matters.
Xu Meng, clearly in no mood for jokes, was in agony over her predicament – far more than anyone else could imagine. I felt sorry for her; already dealt a challenging life, now she faced this ordeal.
Xu Meng knelt down before me, tears flowing, pleading for another ghost tattoo in hopes of removing the corpse fetus.
I swiftly helped her to her feet. It wasn't that I didn't want to tattoo her; there simply wasn't a design for this sort of predicament – I had never heard of such a thing as a corpse fetus.
A dead body simply couldn't have the power to impregnate someone – the situation was indeed baffling. And was Chen Xiaomei concealing some secret, willing to die than face it?
Seeing Xu Meng cry, I felt terrible. If I didn't help her resolve this, I feared she might consider worse. Such an extraordinary situation is indeed hard for anyone to accept.
I asked Aizi Xing if there was any way to abort the fetus without harming Xu Meng. It wouldn't be worth it if the procedure caused lasting harm.
After pondering, Aizi Xing suggested finding a Taoist priest who might know what to do.
A Taoist priest? Who would we go to? Zhang Qing?
Just then, there was a loud commotion outside.
"Tang Haozi, damn you, it's just a debt of twenty thousand! Is it worth this hassle? Complaining to my sister, are you even human?"
Ah, what a coincidence – the Taoist priest has arrived!