“Hello, hello!”
“Is this the militia office?” Tian Cunzhang (Village Chief Tian) dashed back to his office like the wind, frantically cranking the handle of the old telephone. As soon as the operator connected the line, he couldn’t help shouting loudly into the receiver.
“Er… May I ask who is calling?” A young man’s voice came from the other end of the line, clearly surprised.
“I need your team leader, Zhou Guangting!”
“No… I mean, may I have your name first? I need to register…” Before the young man could finish, an enraged Tian Cunzhang exploded in anger.
“Register your mother’s place! Get Zhou Guangting on the phone right now! Something big happened in our village!” Holding the receiver tightly, Village Chief Tian practically pressed his mouth right against it, spitting saliva all over the phone.
“Okay, please wait a moment.” The young man was confused but had no choice but to fetch the militia team leader to handle the situation. As the sound of static filled the line, it felt like an eternity for Village Chief Tian.
A few minutes later, a bold voice finally came through: “Hey, who’s this? This is Zhou Guangting speaking!”
“It’s me, Tian Guangrong…” The village chief replied gruffly.
“Oh, Chief Tian! What’s going on?”
“Never mind asking questions! You better bring a truckload of militiamen over right away! We’ve got a major problem! Wait, don’t hang up! Also, bring two barrels of gasoline. Can’t find any? Then just take it! Drain the fuel tanks of those two trucks; I’ll cover the cost afterward. And better bring your guns too.” The village chief ordered.
“Hey, Old Tian, what the hell are you planning? Is this an exercise or a real battle?” Zhou Guangting’s eyes widened.
“Don’t waste my time with nonsense! Just get here fast; it’s urgent!”
“Alright, I’m on my way!” Zhou Guangting sensed something unusual, furrowed his brows, quickly hung up the phone, and rushed outside to gather the militiamen. In his memory, Village Chief Tian had always been calm and composed, decisive and methodical. Rumor had it he was even the top candidate for the next town mayor. Now he was acting so desperate—something must have gone seriously wrong. Could it be bandits? But in this peaceful era, that seemed unlikely.
A few hours later, more than a dozen militiamen with rifles suddenly arrived in the village. Their faces were pale from the cold, and they kept stamping their feet while rubbing their hands. The villagers were immediately alarmed and came out of their homes to see what was happening. They saw Village Chief Tian, accompanied by Liu Dashao, walking toward them.
After a brief greeting, Village Chief Tian directed the militiamen to unload large plastic barrels from the trucks and placed them around the big willow tree. Everyone was puzzled about what the village chief was planning. Liu Dashao, standing nearby, spoke up first, asking the villagers to bring firewood from their homes. Since every household had plenty of firewood, the villagers quickly sprang into action at Tian’s command. Adults and children worked together for quite a while, piling up several small mountains of firewood around the tree.
Then, Village Chief Tian ordered two militiamen armed with old rifles to remove the existing barriers around the tree, piling a large circle of firewood at its base. They opened the barrels, revealing their contents—gasoline. They poured large amounts of the fuel over the firewood. When everything was ready, the militia leader instructed the villagers to stand about fifty to sixty meters away, while the militiamen positioned themselves much closer, looking extremely alert. They held their old rifles in front of them, cocking the bolts with sharp, metallic clicks.
Everything was set before the villagers even fully understood what was happening. At Village Chief Tian’s command, one militiaman stepped forward with a torch and ignited the gasoline-soaked pile. The fire flared up instantly, growing stronger and stronger.
The blazing fire, fueled by the gasoline-soaked wood, roared in the quiet open field, crackling loudly. The temperature around the fire rose rapidly, radiating heat that made people’s faces feel hot and burning.
The villagers were confused about what the village chief was trying to accomplish. The children, however, didn’t overthink it—they were simply mesmerized by the spectacular sight, eyes wide with fascination.
At this moment, Liu Dashao showcased his talent, using his silver tongue to his advantage. He found a flat stone to sit on and began explaining everything to the crowd. Village Chief Tian listened from the front but didn’t stop him, only reminding the militiamen to work faster while staying cautious in case the monster made a desperate move. Soon, the rumor about Alang’s corpse returning from the dead spread through the crowd. It was said that she had eaten the innards of everyone’s chickens and ducks. When Liu Dashao described how horrifyingly Alang had chewed the organs, the villagers turned pale with fear. Some of the more timid children sat on the ground crying. A few elderly men with more experience noticed the militiamen standing guard and assumed everything was under control. Trying to appear calm and composed, they pointed at the tree with their walking sticks, saying that what the village chief had done was right. They claimed Alang wasn’t resurrected—this was a case of a corpse transforming. Fortunately, Village Chief Tian had acted quickly; otherwise, once the transformation was complete, not a single one of the village’s hundred or so residents would have escaped. Hearing about Alang being burned in the fire, Party Secretary Li Yang slowly made his way forward. As the saying goes, “Even a one-day marriage brings a hundred days of affection.” Since they had once been lovers, he hurried forward to ask the militiamen to put out the fire, but a cold glare from Village Chief Tian made him retreat, too afraid to say another word.
In no time, the big willow tree was engulfed in flames. At this point, Village Chief Tian spoke again, ordering everyone except the able-bodied men to return to the village. The elderly, women, and children gradually went back home. Although a few particularly stubborn children resisted, a couple of slaps from their fathers forced them to sulkily follow their families home.
The area around the fire became quieter, now occupied only by the strong young men, Village Chief Tian, and his militia. Then, with a wave of his hand, the village chief signaled. The militiamen brought out something else from the cart—something the villagers had never seen before. It was a net made of thin iron cables, with small iron hooks attached at each knot. Working together, they laid this strange device in a circle around the fire, securing it firmly to the ground with stakes. When everything was ready, Village Chief Tian instructed everyone to stand in a circle around the iron net. The villagers, though puzzled, obediently followed his orders.
The fire grew stronger, and waves of heat radiated outward, scorching their faces. Many couldn’t stand the heat and instinctively stepped back.
Suddenly, movement appeared on the tree engulfed in flames. From the burning branches, a fiery column twisted rapidly and leaped from the top of the tree down into the blazing pile of firewood below.
At this sight, the villagers and several young militiamen in front burst into commotion, pointing and shouting. Some of the more timid ones even screamed!
The thing that had fallen into the fire continued to struggle within the flames. One brave soul stared at it for a while and gasped in horror. It was a burning human-like figure, completely ablaze, writhing in agony in a desperate attempt to escape the fire. But the fire was too intense, fueled by the gasoline. The creature thrashed about for a while, scattering burning firewood everywhere, causing the crowd to retreat in fear. Still, it couldn’t escape.
Finally, Alang, severely burned, used her last bit of strength to leap from the fire and landed on the iron net that had been laid in advance. Her body was already engulfed in flames—whether human or ghost, the intense pain caused her to twist and turn on the net. The iron hooks immediately caught onto her body. As she struggled, the hooks dug deeper and deeper into her once alluring form.
As she continued to struggle, more and more hooks grabbed her. Eventually, exhausted, her movements slowed until she lay still. The fire hadn’t yet died down. The smell of burning flesh filled the air, making everyone around feel nauseated. Yet no one moved. Overcome with morbid curiosity, they stood rooted to the spot like statues.
The flames gradually weakened, and the fire on Alang’s body finally extinguished. Strangely, her body hadn’t turned to ashes despite the intense heat. Instead, her skin was covered in thick layers of black char, like a roasted sweet potato.
Seeing the smoke rising higher and higher, Village Chief Tian thought to himself that it was time to stop before something else went wrong. It seemed like the situation was finally under control. He felt relieved and waved his hand, calling for a few men to go to the coffin shop and fetch a coffin to bury her. At this moment, Li Yang stepped forward, saying he wanted to see Alang one last time and close the coffin lid as a final farewell. Village Chief Tian was perceptive and sharp-eyed; he knew exactly what Li Yang had done with Alang. But the fact that Li Yang could still say this showed that he wasn’t a completely heartless man, so Tian nodded in agreement.
Li Yang approached to close the coffin lid. But just as he reached out his hand, Alang’s charred corpse suddenly sat up and bit his arm. Although a woman’s teeth weren’t as sharp as those of tigers or wolves, it still hurt so much that Li Yang screamed in pain. Realizing the danger, Village Chief Tian immediately ordered Zhou Guangting to bring some men to restrain her. With several strong men working together, they managed to pull Li Yang away from Alang’s mouth. Examining his arm, they saw only a deep bite mark with some bleeding. After biting him, Alang didn’t move again and simply lay back down. The villagers whispered that she had become a “zombie,” and even the big, bold Zhou Guangting agreed. Worried that more trouble might arise, Village Chief Tian instructed Li Yang to go to the village clinic to bandage his wound and get it disinfected. He also told the militiamen to close the coffin lid and, just to be safe, nailed four large iron nails into each side to prevent anything like this from happening again. With the nails in place, the militiamen felt completely reassured. They then carried Alang’s coffin, swaying slightly, and headed toward the unmarked graves near the dam.
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